Does it feel safe to go back to the high street?

Dallying on measures such as mandatory face masks means the government risks undermining its own advice, writes Ben Chapman

espite social distancing and queues, many shoppers braved the high street in June, but there may be problems ahead (PA)

Britain will bounce back from coronavirus with a quick, v-shaped recovery, said Bank of England chief economist Andy Haldane just a couple of weeks ago.

He may yet be proved correct but he is now one of a small and dwindling band of optimists after the latest official numbers showed the green shoots of recovery barely began to show themselves in May, even as lockdown eased and construction and manufacturing workers started to go back to work.

The economy grew much slower than expected, just 1.8 per cent. Not nearly enough to take the edge off a colossal 25 per cent drop in March and April. True, there were some slightly more encouraging signs elsewhere. Despite social distancing and queues, many shoppers braved the high street in June, spending more than in the same month last year, according to figures from the big retailers.