Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall and wife of the heir to the throne, Prince Charles, has said she “can’t wait to get rid of” masks.
“I can’t wait to get rid of these,” the Duchess is reported to have said to an MA student, named as William Pearson, while on a visit to the Royal College of Welsh Music and Drama with her husband.
The Duchess was speaking ahead of the Boris Johnson administration’s previously delayed “freedom day” on July 19th, when many of the remaining anti-coronavirus measures in the country may be lifted — including the requirement to wear face coverings indoors.
An end to compulsory masking in England is not without controversy, with Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer having complained in the House of Commons that the country “should open up in a controlled way, keeping baseline protections such as masks on public transport, improving ventilation, making sure the Track and Trace system remains effective, and ensuring proper payments for self-isolation.”
Faceless Britain: Eight in Ten Brits Would Choose to Wear a Mask https://t.co/sOFOx6Aunx
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) July 8, 2021
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that “it is common sense [that] people in confined spaces [should continue] to wear a face mask, out of respect and courtesy to others” — although he is currently facing criticism for apparently having already ceased to do so himself.
The Tory leader was pictured leaving the scene of the English football team’s recent victory over Denmark — securing them a place in the final of the pandemic-postponed UEFA European Football Championship 2020 — in a chauffer-driven car completely maskless, unlike his wife, security agents, and driver, in spite of government guidelines recommending face coverings.
“The Prime Minister claims people should use their common sense but he has just demonstrated that he has none,” remarked Labour shadow health minister Justin Madder, accusing Johnson of having “never taken this pandemic seriously”.
Leaving that incident aside, there is no guarantee that Britons will really find themselves in a position to leave their masks at home after the 19th, with it being possible that bus and train operators will make wearing them a condition of carriage.
“If organisations require [mask wearing] to be a condition of carriage, then I’m very relaxed about that. It’s up to them to do,” confirmed Grant Shapps MP, Boris Johnson’s Secretary of State for Transport.
Airlines, in particular, plan to continue to enforce mask-wearing under the Air Navigation Act 2016, which requires passengers to obey “all lawful commands of the pilot” — with refuseniks liable to be charged with a criminal offence, according to The Telegraph.
Airports, too, are said to be considering introducing mask mandate by-laws, in order to stay in line with carriers.
Deputy Chief Medical Officer Predicts Brits ‘Choosing’ to Mask Forever, Regular Vaccines https://t.co/4igWlUhLdt
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) January 15, 2021
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