Don’t make shop staff enforce face mask rules in NI, pleads retail chief

Shop staff should not be asked to enforce rules around the wearing of face masks, the chief executive of Retail NI has said.
A woman in a face mask walks through Belfast city centreA woman in a face mask walks through Belfast city centre
A woman in a face mask walks through Belfast city centre

Glyn Roberts was speaking after Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that face masks will be mandatory in shops in England from July 24.

Face coverings are already mandatory in Scottish shops.

The Executive Office at Stormont, meanwhile, has said it is keeping the issue “under continuous review” for Northern Ireland.

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The Northern Ireland Infrastructure Minister Nichola Mallon, who has already made face masks mandatory on public transport here, said she supports their use in shops as well.

The minister said if the science supports the use of masks on public transport, that shops should also be included.

Mr Roberts told the News Letter: “The starting point for this has to be the science – we have to follow the science.

“If the Executive is planning to introduce the wearing of face masks in shops then we need to have that clarified as quickly as possible.

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“The other thing is that if it is going to become mandatory that it is completely unfair to ask shop staff to enforce this practice.”

Mr Roberts added: “We’ve already had tensions in the past where staff have been trying to ensure people abide by the regulations.

“There have been incidents of shop staff trying to police social distancing being abused by a small minority of customers.

“I think it would be completely unfair to ask staff to enforce this [face masks].

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“If it is introduced in Northern Ireland, like England, the police should enforce the regulations.”

Meanwhile, the chairman of the Northern Ireland branch of the British Medical Association doctor’s group has said he is confident most people will be wearing face masks in shops soon.

Speaking to BBC Radio Foyle, Dr Tom Black said: “I would be fairly confident that most of us will be wearing face coverings inside where we have difficulty maintaining social distancing and that will happen gradually in the next few weeks.”

Dr Black added: “There is less speed on this than we would’ve expected, but it’s going in the right direction.”