Covid Inspectors spotted peeking in pubs and bars for illegal lock-ins after 10pm curfew

Covid Inspectors were found peeping through pub and bar windows and letterboxes to find lock-ins that are now illegal. 

The 10pm curfew put in place by Boris Johnson across the nation came into effect last week and inspectors have been spotted in Soho ensuring venues are abiding by the rules.

Taking to Twitter, Dan Barker wrote: “Strange sight – City Inspectors, working through Soho, looking for illegal speakeasies open after the 10pm cutoff.”

Speaking to Yahoo News, Barker said: “I’d guess I saw them looking into a dozen or so places – the area has quite a lot of pubs and bars.

“It took me a moment to process what they were doing at first. I saw them again 15 minutes or so later outside the Hippodrome, which is usually open 24/7.”

On Tuesday Boris Johnson set out the new rules in the Commons saying: “In retail, leisure and tourism and other sectors, our Covid-secure guidelines will become legal obligations.”

This meant venues and business owners face fines of up to £10,000 for breaking the curfew, which could be in place for up to six months.

However, many have said the curfew is ineffective, including Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham.

And crowds of people have been seen flooding the streets, public transport, taxi ranks and even supermarkets on the hunt for more booze.

One person wrote: “The 10pm curfew just meant everyone rolling out onto the streets and onto the tubes at the same time and it was the busiest I’ve seen central London in months.” 

And another replied: “Yep! Definitely turned 10pm into a rush-hour rather than the usual evening trickle.”

Barker added that the streets became ‘surprisingly subdued’ shortly after ten. Explaining that ‘people congregated around at 10pm, as places closed their doors.’

Adding: “Some people seemed confused that literally everything was closed, but the streets became almost silent shortly after ten.”