LABOUR leader Sir Keir Starmer has slammed Boris Johnson after he told people to get back to work but not to take public transport “if at all possible”.
The PM has urged people to get on the bikes or walk to work if they cannot work from home – but hasn’t said what to do if they can’t do so.
But Sir Keir told Sky News: “Millions of people particularly in construction will go back tomorrow, that’s in about 12 hours time.
“(They are) being told to go back to work and if possible not to use public transport – that’s a real logistical nightmare.
He added: “Lots of people will be scratching their heads tonight.”
Sir Keir said there was no well-thought through plan on how to ensure worker’s safety.
He told the BBC: “We are rushing into tomorrow, asking people to go back to work, that’s millions of people, without a clear plan for safety.”
Mr Johnson also said that the government wants to ensure everyone is “safe at work” with new guidance for employers to make workplaces COVID-secure.
The guidance last week said all workers should be spaced two metres apart, canteens could need to be closed, and employees put on a shift-plan to stop rush-hour commutes.
He said: “We now need to stress that anyone who can’t work from home, for instance those in construction or manufacturing, should be actively encouraged to go to work.
“And we want it to be safe for you to get to work. So you should avoid public transport if at all possible – because we must and will maintain social distancing, and capacity will therefore be limited.
“So work from home if you can, but you should go to work if you can’t work from home.”
Those who now must attend work should travel their by car, on foot or via bicycle.
He added that public transport will also be following COVID-secure standards, as well as workplaces.
In a video message tonight the PM:
- Urged Brits to get back to work if they can’t from home
- Revealed Brits would be allowed to sunbathe in parks and play unlimited sport from Wednesday – and can go on day trips
- Said anyone coming into the country by air would be forced to quarantine
- Schools will start going back from June – but only if the infection level is low enough
- But he warned that pubs, cinemas and mass gatherings would be off the cards for months to come
The government plans to lay out more plans tomorrow and later this week for stage one of the roadmap
The rules around construction sites and builders had been unclear, with some sites staying open during the peak of the virus.
Workplaces that are allowed to reopen will have to follow strict new COVID-secure rules, such as separate entrances and exits, desks that face away from each other and possibly rotations of workforces to keep exposure to the minimum.
Mr Johnson paid tribute to key workers, such as NHS staff but also the police, bus drivers, and supermarket workers who have helped with the fight against the disease.
But the PM warned that the plans were conditional to infection rates dropping.
He added: “Throughout this period of the next two months we will be driven not by mere hope or economic necessity.
“We are going to be driven by the science, the data and public health.
“And I must stress again that all of this is conditional, it all depends on a series of big Ifs.”
Visits to pubs, cinemas and gigs will be banned for months.
While anyone entering the country will have to quarantine under new rules set out by the PM.
