Shops in England can open for 24 hours once the lockdown is lifted

Image source, Getty Images

Image caption, Non-essential shops have been shut since 5 November

Shops in England are allowed to open for 24 hours a day once the English Lockdown is lifted on Wednesday 2 December.

Lots of non-essential shops lost lots of money because they had to close during lockdown and it is hoped extending opening hours can help them.

The government says it is also so that shops and public transport don't get too busy, so social distancing can be maintained.

Shops can work with local councils to extend their hours if they would like to. Clothing store Primark has already said its shops will be open 24 hours in the run up to Christmas.

The new rule for opening and closing times applies Monday to Saturday but not Sunday.

Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick said: "None of us, I suspect, enjoys navigating the crowds, and none would relish that when social distancing is so important to controlling the virus.

"These changes mean your local shops can open longer, ensuring more pleasant and safer shopping, with less pressure on public transport."

What have people said about the new rules?

Some shop keepers are happy about the news but others are asking why shops are allowed extended opening hours when restaurants are bars are facing continued restrictions.

The British Retail Consortium (BRC) welcomed the move. "With just over three weeks until Christmas, shoppers will welcome the additional opportunities to shop that the government's statement supports," BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson said.

She encouraged Christmas shoppers not to leave it until the last minute and to avoid peak times.

But Kate Nicholls, the chief executive of UK Hospitality, described the relaxing of rules for retail as "arbitrary and unfair".

"You are reopening broad swathes of the economy with next to no restrictions in the middle of what is still set out by the government to be a really significant pandemic," she told the 大象传媒.

Image source, Getty Images

Image caption, It is currently only England this new rule applies to, many other nations are still facing tougher restrictions

What about elsewhere in the UK?

Currently, it is only England that this new rule applies to.

Welsh First Minister Mark Drakeford announced on Monday that indoor entertainment such as cinemas and museums would have to shut to stop the spread of coronavirus.

There are 11 areas across Scotland that are currently in 'Level 4' restrictions, which sees non-essential shops close but schools remaining open. They went into level 4 on Friday and will remain so for three weeks.

As of the November 27, Northern Ireland has seen cafes, restaurants and non-essential shops are closed for two weeks, but schools have remained open.