Lockdown: GP warns ‘we’ve lost the battle’ and rules are ‘cosmetic’

England is back under lockdown conditions, meaning Britons must stay at home, work from home and put any plans on hold for the time being. Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the news via a televised statement on Monday evening, with a new strain of coronavirus causing cases to grow sharply.

Schools, colleges and universities have been told to provide online learning only, while those who can work from home have been urged to do so.

Britons can only leave home for essential reasons such as attending work, caring for someone or to shop for essential groceries.

However with more and more time spent at home, many across the UK have opted to do up their homes and hire contractors to do so.

What do the new lockdown rules mean for builders?

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Can builders work in Tier 5 lockdown?

Construction work, including building work on self-build and renovation sites, can continue according to the Government guidelines.

Tradespeople are also permitted to work in other people’s homes.

This means any works can go ahead as planned.

As well as this, builders merchants are allowed to stay open with no restrictions on items sold.

Any builders carrying out work in other peoples homes are asked to wear face masks where possible.

In recent months the construction sector has seen an increase while other industries have struggled.

Some have credited this with the Government’s stamp duty cut which has boosted demand for new homes.

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Ben Dyer, CEO of Powered Now, told Express.co.uk how British construction and manufacturing will fare in the winter.

He said: “The economic recovery we have seen over the past months is indeed welcome, but of course with most of Britain being placed in national lockdown, this month and the remainder of the winter season are of course going to present yet more challenges.

“That’s why it would be prudent to look towards sectors that remain open, such as Construction and the Trades, to provide the kind of stability we need at the moment.

“The restrictions have had a negligible impact on the construction sector so far, and overall activity around Construction has to be welcomed.

“Given the bonanza that housebuilders are currently experiencing from the Stamp Duty reduction, it’s no surprise that they are the best performing sector of the Construction industry.

“Whether this boom for the housing industry will be followed by a bust is unknown.

“At the moment, most firms are just grateful for the good business they are getting right now given how much other sectors are suffering.​“

However a lack of building materials and reduction in working could lead to a sharp drop in the sector, however, Mr Dyer hopes this isn’t the case.

He said: “It is disappointing that the supply of building materials remains a constraint and it could be argued that suppliers over-reacted to the first lockdown, creating this situation.

“The reduction in the rate of output could be the first signs of a drop in demand from lockdown related macroeconomic damage. Let’s hope that isn’t the case.

“However, it looks like the new restrictions will not impact the specific sub-sector of home improvement either, although the jury is still out.

“It may be that homeowners become more anxious over time, particularly as the virus continues to spread rapidly.

“The biggest concern overall is about the supply of materials.

“Fortunately, at the moment the indicators are that the shortage is easing.”

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