UK ministers target June 22 for reopening of England’s pubs and restaurants – FT

In a bid to avoid the risks of mass jobless, if missed out on the summer season, the UK policymakers are inching closer to announce some heavy reliefs to the hospitality sector, per the Financial Times (FT).

Key quotes

Chancellor Rishi Sunak is among half a dozen ministers — calling themselves the ‘save summer six’ — seeking to accelerate the reopening of the economy. The hospitality sector was not due to open until July 4.

Downing Street said no date had been set for the reopening of beer gardens, terraces and marquees, but three senior Whitehall officials said the target date was June 22. The cabinet will discuss the plan on Tuesday.

The Sunday Times reported that UK PM Boris Johnson simply said ‘Christ!’ when warned by Alok Sharma, business secretary, last week that 3.5m jobs were at risk in the hospitality sector.

Mr. Sharma has been asked by Mr. Johnson to make the case for cutting Britain’s 2m social distancing rule to allow for more customers to be served in commercial premises. The business secretary spoke to his Danish counterpart on Sunday to discuss the operation of that country’s 1m rule.

Mr. Sunak is among those who would like to see a full reopening of pubs and restaurants before July 4, with social distancing rules in place.

Meanwhile, the government confirmed it would open up places of worship for private prayer on June 15, the same day as non-essential retail.

FX implications

Despite being early in Asia, the GBP/USD pair manages to cheer the news with an uptick to 1.2689 by the press time.