Millions of people were today urged by a Cabinet minister to carry a face covering when leaving home so they can slip one on when they go into a shop or on public transport.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps issued the appeal ahead of new regulations coming into force making it compulsory to wear a face covering in shops.

There has been some confusion over the requirement, which comes into force from Friday, after Cabinet ministers gave conflicting advice on whether people would have to put on a mask when buying drink or food in coffee shops.

Mr Shapps told Sky News: “Shops, for example, and public transport, the simple rule — just to remove the confusion — is from this weekend start to wear face coverings. It’s already mandatory on public transport. We will also be making it mandatory to do that in other closed public spaces.

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“If all you bear in mind is that from this weekend you need to be carrying a face covering, you can’t go wrong.”

For most retail shops the official guidance will be that it is mandatory to wear a mask, though not to go into food outlets such as Pret A Manger and other takeaways where it will only be encouraged.

The Government has already been encouraging people to wear face coverings in shops as an act of “altruism”. If an individual has coronavirus a mask can limit its spread and the risk of infecting others.

However, many shoppers in supermarkets and other stores are still not using face coverings, potentially putting other people at risk.

More than 56,000 people with coronavirus have already died in the UK, according to official figures.

Metropolitan Police Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick said she hopes shoppers who refuse to wear masks will be “shamed” into compliance and told LBC radio that calling the police over someone failing to wear a face covering should only be “a last resort”.

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/health/grant-shapps-brits-carry-face-masks-a4505471.html