The 30-person limit on wedding guests will be still lifted, even if the next phase of the roadmap out of lockdown on 21 June, or ‘Freedom Day’, as it has been dubbed, is delayed.
The Standard reports that Boris Johnson, who himself was recently married to Carrie Symonds in a small and secret ceremony, is keen on relaxing the limits on guests at weddings and receptions on 21 June, despite minsters considering delaying the so-called Freedom Day for two weeks amid concern of the spread of the Delta variant of the coronavirus.
The original roadmap out of the lockdown had scheduled the lifting of all restrictions by 21 June at the earliest, including the caps on wedding guests, and it is now thought that this limit will be lifted even if sisal distancing and other restrictions remain in place.
It is also thought that the 30-person limits on other events scubas funerals, bar mitzvahs, and christenings, will also be scrapped in line with weddings.
Guests from different households will not have to social distance themselves, but the government has advised that they remain ‘cautious’ about contact with people they do not live with, and there will also be guidance advising against dancing – with the exception of the first dance.
Guests and staff will still be required to wear masks unless eating or drinking, and people will be advised to make their own assessment of the risk of hugging others.
Many couples have had to postpone their weddings repeatedly since the first lockdown in March last year, with many struggling to get refunds if they’ve been forced to cancel the big day.
A source told the Times: “It’s been tough on the sector. If you’ve got stadiums full of people, why can’t weddings go ahead with more than 30 people?”
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