By Police say people are still breaking Covid-19 lockdown rules in Watford
Hertfordshire Police say that they are receiving countless reports that people are still breaking Covid-19 lockdown rules in Watford. They are now urging people to observe the UK government’s social distancing measures.
Last week, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced stricter measures in order to curb any further spread of coronavirus, essentially placing the UK in a state of lockdown.
It was stated that people should only leave their homes to shop for essentials, to exercise once a day, or for essential work, and that those leaving their homes should remain at least two meters apart.
However, police in Watford have said that while the majority of people are abiding by the rules, they are still seeing “problem areas” in the town where people are ignoring government guidelines. Primarily, they have cited the issues they are still facing as including:
“Groups congregating in the park; if you are NOT from the same household going to the park to play ball games is NOT acceptable! We are not just seeing this as a problem with youth groups, multiple groups of adults from separate households have been stopped in the park just for a kick around” and “youths congregating in areas; we are receiving multiple calls and witnessing youths congregating in different areas around Watford.”
They have encouraged parents to “have open discussions with their children about the severity of the current situation. Please remind your kids that them going on bike ride to meet with friends is not acceptable at the moment.”
In clarification of what is meant by approved exercise or an essential journey, Watford Police said that the government “surprisingly doesn’t advise coming to the park to smoke a joint.”
Hertfordshire’s Chief Constable Charlie Hall said:
“This is a public health emergency and compliance with these measures is considered necessary to achieve the objective of effective social distancing.
We have all heard the scientific advice which clearly states this will slow the spread of the virus and save people’s lives.
The constabulary urges self-compliance within all Hertfordshire’s communities. Officers and staff will encourage all citizens to do so, remind those who we see in public who we believe may not be following them to do so, and only resort to enforcement action as a last resort.
If we all work at this together we will slow the spread, save more lives and enable us to return to normality sooner.”
Contact Gi Watford
Email us: news@gi-media.co.uk
