Supermarkets, clothing stores and cinemas will be among the businesses closing their doors today for the Queen’s funeral. It was announced last week that the day of the funeral will also be a public bank holiday.
As a result, many of the country’s biggest retailers have said they will shut their stores so their workers can pay tribute to the Queen. Major supermarkets such as Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Lidl and Aldi were among those closing their stores for the day, as reported by Hull Live.
“We want to express our deepest condolences to the royal family, as well as our gratitude to Her Majesty the Queen for her unwavering service,” said Tesco’s UK chief executive Jason Tarry. The UK’s biggest grocery business said it will open its Express convenience stores from 5pm, while a small number of convenience stores in central London and Windsor will remain open.
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Other retailers including Sainsbury’s also said convenience stores and petrol stations will open from 5pm. Asda said it will shut its stores for the funeral, but all its supermarkets will open from 5pm, with colleagues working on Monday evening to receive double pay.
Other high street retailers, such as Marks & Spencer and Primark, also said they will shut for the day. Cinema chains such as Cineworld and Odeon have also announced plans to keep their venues shut.
Nevertheless, Downing Street has indicated that it is up to individual businesses how they approach the bank holiday.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said the day of the funeral will operate as “a standard bank holiday”.
“Obviously individual businesses will need to make the decisions about what’s right for them and discuss with their employees but there is obviously no one-size-fits-all approach.”
A number of pub groups have said they will have venues open during the day. Pub group Stonegate said it will open on Monday and plans to show the Queen’s funeral on screens.
Premier Inn owner Whitbread also said it will keep its hotels and restaurants open as usual. JD Wetherspoon said central London, railway station and airport pubs will open from 8am on Monday, while the majority of its pubs will only open from about 1pm, after the funeral takes place.
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