At this evening’s daily briefing, prime minister Boris Johnson is expected to announce the official reopening dates for zoos, safari parks and drive-in cinemas. This latest step in easing lockdown regulations will indicate that such establishments can reopen from this Monday, as long as they maintain social distancing rules.
London Zoo and Chester Zoo have previously voiced their concern regarding reopening, reporting considerable financial struggles during the pandemic. The pair have been closed since 20 and 21 March respectively. Stanley Johnson, the prime minister’s father, and a number of Tory MPs have called for zoos to reopen to ensure their survival. It is also expected that non-essential shops will be allowed to re-open from 15 June.
Alok Sharma, the business secretary, said yesterday that "we continue to meet" the five tests for lifting coronavirus lockdown restrictions, allowing retailers to reopen. He continued that pubs, restaurants and hairdressers are not expected to be reopened until 4 July "at the earliest".
In today’s PMQs, Boris Johnson is expected to face extensive questioning regarding the government’s back track on the reopening of all schools before the summer holiday. Norman Smith, the BBC’s assistant political editor, has said there is an "awkward juxtaposition" between the decision to reopen zoos, and the growing concern as to when schools will reopen.
While Robert Halfon, chair of the education select committee, said he was “happy” to hear zoos would be reopening, he tweeted that Boris Johnson ought to "set out a national plan on how we get schools opening again and a catch up programme for left-behind pupils whose life chances are being damaged by being off school for 40% of school year".
