Regular readers of this blog will know
that one of my ‘pet hates’ at the moment is the way that supermarkets in the UK
have been openly ignoring the laws relating to wearing masks and face coverings
during the coronavirus pandemic.
Like many of our readers, I have been
horrified by the number of people allowed into supermarkets who are not wearing
face coverings. Of course, there is the problem that many of these customers
will claim that they are medically exempt (for example if they have long-term
breathing difficulties, lung disease, or asthma).
But it's obvious to anyone with half a
brain that most of these people refusing to wear masks have absolutely
nothing wrong with them, and they see themselves as brave 'rebels' against
government rules. Or maybe they are just mindless morons who don't care about the
damage they are causing to wider society by flouting the law.
So when it was announced earlier this
week that Morrissons supermarket were going to ban customers who refused to
wear masks, it seemed like a step in the right direction.
The announcement by Morrissons was
quickly followed by Sainsburys the following day. And then, as expected, their
main rivals (Tesco, Asda and Waitrose) quickly announced that they would also
ban customers who refuse to wear masks.
It might sound like good
news that supermarkets are, at last, taking seriously their moral responsibility
towards the health and safety of their customers. But wait a minute...
Are supermarkets being honest, or is this just a clever PR stunt?
Enforcement of face coverings is
officially a police responsibility. However, supermarkets can deny entry to
their stores (which are classed as private property) and can call the police
if someone refuses to follow the rules or becomes abusive to staff.
But the police have said that there is
not much officers can do to enforce the rules in shops because they are already
too busy.
So what will the supermarkets REALLY
do if they are faced with a customer who simply refuses to wear a mask on entry
to the store? Maybe they could deny the customer entry to begin with. But what
if the customer wears a mask on entry and then takes it off once inside the
store? Are the supermarkets seriously going to eject someone by force? I doubt it.
The Government’s Policing Minister Kit
Malthouse said that the police would offer backup if things go seriously wrong.
According to him: "What we hope is that, in the vast majority of cases,
the enforcement put in place by the store owners will be enough."
This all sounds very vague and weak.
Everyone knows that the police are simply too busy to be ejecting people from
supermarkets who break the mask rules. And the supermarket staff will obviously
not want to get into a conflict situation with a customer who refuses to wear a
mask.
Just imagine the bad publicity it
would create if a customer was forcibly ejected from a store and then it
transpired that they had a genuine health condition that made them exempt from
wearing a mask!
And how do they prove that they are
exempt? Wait for it… this is almost unbelievable! If you want to prove that you
are exempt, then you just go onto a Government website and download yourself a badge (that you print at home) which says you are exempt. You don’t need to
give any proof whatsoever!! (If you don’t believe me, visit the website
given at the end of this article).
What do the supermarkets say?
TESCO: A Tesco spokeswoman said the chain had decided to strengthen its policies: "To protect our
customers and colleagues, we won't let anyone into our stores who is not
wearing a face covering, unless they are exempt in line with government
guidance. We are also asking our customers to shop alone, unless they're a
carer or with children. To support our colleagues, we will have additional
security in stores to help manage this."
ASDA: An Asda spokesman said if
customers had forgotten their face coverings, it would continue to offer them one
free of charge. But he added: "Should a customer refuse to wear a covering
without a valid medical reason and be in any way challenging to our colleagues
about doing so, our security colleagues will refuse their entry."
SAINSBURY’S: Sainsbury's said it did not
have the power to deny entry to shoppers without masks. However, trials showed
customers complied more when asked to wear masks by security guards at the
door. In an interview with the BBC, Sainsbury's boss, Simon Roberts,
said "we are not going to ban customers". But he urged shoppers to
wear a mask and shop alone.
CO-OP: The Co-op also said it would
not ban shoppers without masks from entering, and instead urged customers to
take responsibility for wearing a face covering when visiting its stores, as it
was mandatory by law.
ICELAND: Iceland said it would take a
similar approach, adding the vast majority of its customers continued to shop
in compliance with the law
WAITROSE: Andrew Murphy, the Executive
Director of Operations at Waitrose, said: "We've listened carefully to the
clear change in tone and emphasis of the views and information shared by the
UK's governments in recent days. By insisting on the wearing of face coverings,
we aim to make our shops even safer for customers."
But another Waitrose spokesperson also
said "In view of the rising tide of abuse and violence being directed at
our store colleagues, we do not expect them to confront the small minority of
customers who aggressively refuse to comply with the law,"
Or, to put it in other words, Waitrose
are not going to do anything at all when customers break the rules!!
This is all just an obvious Public Relations stunt
by the supermarkets, who are effectively not going to do anything at all to
protect their customers. What a waste of time!
If you want to find out what the official Government rules are relating to face coverings during the pandemic then click here.
All quotes from supermarkets were taken from the BBC News website in January 2021
© Darren Bugg 2021
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