The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (No. 2) (England) Regulations 2020 (SI 2020/684) is a statutory instrument (SI) enacted on 4 July 2020 by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Matt Hancock, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. It replaced and relaxed the previous Lockdown Regulations (SI 2020/350), and gave the Secretary of State powers to make declarations restricting access to public outdoor places. This SI related to England only; there were similar regulations for Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Within England, Leicester was initially excluded to its high rate of COVID-19. Subsequent amendments were made to enable more restrictive local rules to be applied in other areas. The regulations were substantially amended on 14 October 2020 by the First COVID-19 tier regulations, and expired on 4 January 2021.
Context and earlier regulations The first responses by the UK government to the developing COVID-19 pandemic in England took the form of guidance rather than legislation. Statements by the prime minister and other ministers included advice to schools to cancel trips abroad (12 March); to the public to avoid non-essential travel, crowded places such as pubs and theatres, mass gatherings, and visits to care homes (16 March); and escalated to the closure of schools, colleges and nurseries (announced 18 March, effective 21 March).
Initial regulations, from 21 March 2020 On 21 March under emergency powers the government enacted the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Business Closure) (England) Regulations 2020 (SI 2020/327) which enforced the closure in England of businesses selling food and drink for consumption on the premises, as well as a range of other businesses such as nightclubs and indoor leisure centres where a high risk of infection could be expected. SI 2020/350 revoked SI 2020/327, which had come into force only five days earlier, and re-enacted most of its provisions with more extensive restrictions.
Lockdown Regulations, from 26 March 2020 The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (England) Regulations 2020 (SI 2020/350), informally known as "the Lockdown Regulations", replaced SI 2020/327 on 26 March 2020 with a series of more stringent restrictions. These regulations became the principal delegated English legislation restricting freedom of movement, gatherings, and business closures during the COVID-19 emergency period. There were four primary amendments to SI 2020/327, progressively relaxing the rules, on 22 April, 13 May, 1 June, and 13/15 June. On 4 July 2020, SI 2020/350 was repealed and replaced by these regulations, SI 2020/684.
Regulations
Legal basis The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (No. 2) (England) Regulations 2020 (SI 2020/684) was introduced by way of a Statutory Instrument made by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Matt Hancock, using emergency powers available to him under the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984. The regulations themselves state the legal basis for using such powers, namely "the serious and imminent threat to public health which is posed by the incidence and spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in England"; he also certified that the restrictions "are proportionate to what they seek to achieve, which is a public health response to that threat." The regulations were laid before parliament at 3.00pm on 3 July, the day before the regulations came into force. The Secretary of State once again used section 45R of the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984 to enact the regulations immediately subject to retrospective approval by resolution of each House of Parliament within twenty-eight days. In the regulations themselves he stated that "by reason of urgency, it is necessary to make this instrument" without having first placed a draft before parliament for prior discussion and approval.
Scope and review The regulations (which applied in England only), imposed restrictions during the "emergency period" which effectively re-enacted the identically-named period first defined in the Lockdown Regulations SI 2020/350, as amended. The Secretary of State was given the power to define the end of the period. He was required to review the regulations at least every 28 days, and to terminate any restriction that he considered to be no longer necessary. The regulations initially did not apply in the city of Leicester and the surrounding area. Special rules were in force there from 4 July 2020, as set out in The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (Leicester) Regulations 2020 (SI 2020/685), later partly relaxed.
Commencement The regulations as a whole came into effect at 0.01 am on 4 July 2020, though relaxation of the business closure rules allowing many venues to re-open was deferred until 6.00 am on the same day. According to a government spokesman this was a "sensible precaution" to avoid midnight parties.
Business closures The previous list of businesses required to close was revoked and re-enacted, with fewer restrictions. The only businesses that were still completely barred from re-opening were nightclubs, dance halls, bowling alleys, discotheques; sexual entertainment venues; casinos; nail bars and tanning booths; spas and beauty salons (except hairdressers); massage parlours, tattoo parlours and body piercing services; indoor and outdoor swimming pools; and indoor skating rinks, play areas, gyms, sports courts, and fitness and dance studios. Some exceptions were made for elite athletes, and professional dancers and choreographers. Most trade shows, exhibitions and conferences were still not permitted. Premises previously forced to close but which were permitted under the regulations to re-open (unless they offered services mentioned in the list above) included cafes, bars, pubs; theatres, concert halls, cinemas, museums, galleries, leisure and entertainment venues; social clubs, bingo halls; hairdressers; funfairs, theme parks, model villages; outdoor skating rinks, play areas, gyms and sports courts; indoor attractions at heritage sites, farms, zoos and safari parks; and libraries. Places of worship could re-open generally and were no longer, as previously, restricted to opening for private prayer.
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