'People acted responsibly' - UK health minister
Thousands of people flocked to pubs, restaurants and bars around England on Saturday (July 4) as large parts of the hospitality sector reopened for the first time since March.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has urged people to "enjoy summer safely" as he bids to tread a narrow path of restoring consumer spending to help battered businesses recover, while avoiding a second wave of COVID-19 infections.
The UK has been the European country worst hit by the coronavirus and has an official death toll of 44,198.
Police Federation National Chair John Apter questioned whether the idea of staying socially distanced was compatible with excessive alcohol consumption.
"What was crystal clear is that drunk people can't/won't socially distance," he said in a tweet after finishing a shift in Southampton, south England. "It was a busy night but the shift managed to cope."
