Northampton restaurant slapped with £1,000 fine for breaking Covid rules

Owners of a Northampton restaurant have been hit with a £1,000 fine after council inspectors found people dining in before lockdown restrictions were eased.

Environmental health officers found a number of customers sitting inside the Tuck In cocktail bar and Turkish bistro on May 8.

Diners are now allowed to eat and drink inside pubs and restaurants venues again — but changes to the law surrounding hospital venues only came into effect on 17 May.

Council chiefs revealed owners of the Wellingborough Road venue had been given a string of warnings over breaking Covid regulations.

Cllr David Smith, West Northamptonshire council portfolio holder for community safety and engagement, said: “The overwhelming majority of hospitality businesses are complying with the regulations.

"However, where businesses break the rules despite being warned, we will not hesitate to take enforcement action.

“This particular business had been issued with a number of warnings and given guidance that would have allowed them to continue trading while complying with the regulations, so it was extremely disappointing to find them demonstrating such a blatant disregard for public safety.

"Our Environmental Health Officers have been supporting businesses to comply with the Government’s Covid-19 regulations, and always seek to work with them to ensure they understand their responsibilities and provide a safe environment for their customers and staff.

“We realise the difficult issues faced by the hospitality sector, which is why our priority is to ensure that businesses can open up safely. We don’t want to see the hard work and sacrifice business owners have endured wasted by the actions of a few.”

Rules were changed earlier this month, although some restrictions remain in force for hospitality venues.

Customers need to stay seated when ordering food and drink, groups inside should consist of no more than six people per table with social distancing between groups while customers must wear face coverings while inside except when sat down to eat and drink.