Misery for pub bosses as less than HALF have beer gardens dailymail.co.uk - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from dailymail.co.uk Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Pubs must be open by Easter, Tory MPs demanded today ahead of Boris Johnson s announcement of plans to unchain the UK from coronavirus lockdown.
The COVID Recovery Group of Tory backbenchers seemed unsatisfied with details of the PM s roadmap to recovery briefed over the weekend.
It suggested April could be the earliest that pubs could serve drinks outside, with indoor serving only mooted for as late as mid-May.
But 40 MPs led by the CRG s Mark Harper and Steve Baker want him to speed up the process.
It came as one of the country s biggest pub chains insisted they were ready to open quicker, pointing to the secure serving methods that succeeded last year.
The race was on for drinkers this afternoon as Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced he would open up beer gardens from April 12.
Leaders in the sector had hoped for the PM to inject some fizz into bars and drinking venues and open them up fully by Easter after the success of the UK s huge vaccination programme.
But they were given a consolation prize in the 3.30pm announcement, which said outdoor drinks or takeaway would be permitted from April 12.
The news prompted a scramble to book a space outdoors to enjoy a pub-pulled pint for the the first time this year.