All the places you DO still have to wear a face mask from July 19 revealed

FACE masks are no longer a legal requirement now that England has taken its final step out of lockdown.

Health Secretary Sajid Javid made the announcement to the House of Commons last week.

However, he added that face coverings would be recommended in enclosed areas and on public transport to stop the spread of Covid.

Passengers are strongly encouraged to wear masks on crowded carriages to slash transmission.

Businesses and travel operators can make their own rules – but without the hefty fines to enforce the measures.

Transport for London, for example, has made wearing a face covering a condition for travel on its services, like the Underground and buses.

Announcing the rule, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said he was "not prepared to stand by and put Londoner's and out city's recovery at risk".

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham also stated that masks are required on the city's Metrolink tram service to protect passengers and staff.

Uber has also said its 'No Mask, No Ride' policy remains in place.

Passengers travelling with British Airways, easyJet and Ryanair will need to wear face coverings, as well as on the Eurostar.

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Elsewhere, supermarkets have said shoppers will be told to cover their faces on entry, in line with Government advice.

Tesco, Sainsbury's and Aldi are among those to have announced they still want shoppers to wear masks, despite the legal requirement being lifted.

Other high street shops including Waterstones, John Lewis, Argos and B&Q are also "encouraging" customers to mask up.

And coverings will also be expected at tourist attractions such as London's Natural History Museum and the Historic Royal Palaces, which includes The Tower of London, Hampton Court Palace and Hillsborough Castle and Gardens.

MASKS 'ENCOURAGED'

In NHS settings, staff, patients and visitors need to wear face masks and observe social distancing, Public Health England said.

Nightclubs are not be expected to force patrons to wear masks, though it is down to individual venues to decide.

In any venue, there will be no fines for not wearing masks and there is no legal right for shops to enforce customers to wear masks.

After 18 months of lockdown Mr Javid told MPs the Government would be ploughing ahead with the fourth and final step of the roadmap.

Speaking in the Commons ahead of Boris Johnson's 5pm press briefing, he said: "Now, thanks to the shared sacrifices of the British people, and the protective wall of our vaccination programme, we have made huge advances."

Mr Javid added: "We've looked closely at the data against these four tests and we firmly believe that this is the right time to get our nation closer to normal.

"So we will move to the next stage of our roadmap on July 19. And to those who say why take this step now – I say, if not now, when?"

The PM later urged people to use their own judgement when deciding when to put a mask on, but Downing Street appears to have toughened its stance over the past week and has published strong advice.

He said the four crucial tests – the vaccine rollout continues at pace; jabs are cutting serious illness; infections don't risk crippling the NHS; there are no emerging worrying variants – have been passed.

 

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