A High Court judge has ruled in favour of the government regarding the delay to reopening indoor hospitality venues after a legal challenge. Hugh Osmond, of Punch Taverns, and Sacha Lord, Greater Manchester s night time economy tsar, sought to challenge the decision to delay the reopening of indoor hospitality until May 17, arguing there is no scientific basis for indoor hospitality to remain closed while other businesses such as non-essential retail have been permitted to resume trading. Mr Justice Julian Knowles dismissed the call for judicial review to bring forward indoor reopenings as academic , as the necessary hearing would now be unlikely to take place before May 17, the date by which indoor hospitality is already scheduled to reopen.
Prof Neil Ferguson: I m optimistic summer will be normal
Prof Ferguson, director of the MRC Centre for Global Infectious Disease Analysis at Imperial College London, said: The data is very encouraging and very much in line with what we expected. It s much better to be vaccinating people than shutting down the whole of society. I m feeling fairly optimistic that we will be not completely back to normal but something which feels a lot more normal by the summer.
He said the risk of vaccines being less effective in the face of variants was the major concern that could still lead to a very major third wave in the autumn .
Hugh Osmond, chief of Punch Taverns, says PM s delays costing hospitality £200m per day
He has spearheaded legal action claiming there was no scientific justification for delaying the return of indoor hospitality
But High Court has backed Government s plans to stick to May 17 opening
Judges called case academic as there wasn t time to hear it before that date
Spain and Greece may not be on summer holiday list announced this week
The expected green travel list may include fewer than 10 countries we can holiday in - with Portugal included
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British holidaymakers may have the option of jetting off to a handful of European hotspots from next month.
High Court Judge rules in favour of Government in indoor hospitality court case Date published: 04 May 2021
Night Time Economy Adviser for Greater Manchester, Sacha Lord
Greater Manchester s night-time economy chief Sacha Lord has lost his legal battle against the Government over reopening indoor pubs and restaurants.
The case, brought by Hugh Osmond, Founder of Punch Taverns, and Mr Lord, Founder of Parklife and The Warehouse Project, sought to challenge the decision to delay the reopening of indoor hospitality until May 17, arguing there is no justification or scientific basis for indoor hospitality to remain closed while other businesses such as non-essential retail have been permitted to resume trading.