Covid: Ipswich barber fined for working with virus symptoms

An owner of a barber shop has been fined £1,000 after he developed symptoms of Covid-19 but continued to work until he was taken to hospital, a council said.

Ipswich Borough Council found City Art Turkish Barber breached mask-wearing rules, had no risk assessments and an inadequate test-and-trace system.

The council urged all businesses to follow the rules.

The BBC has attempted to contact the barber shop for comment.

The council said there were few controls at the Carr Street shop; neither staff, the owner nor customers were wearing masks and test-and-trace details were not being recorded correctly.

Alasdair Ross, the council's portfolio holder for public protection, said: "We've all got to play our part in keeping coronavirus down in Ipswich.

"But if your business doesn't do this, you might be paying a big fine or even be closed down."

Richard Lambert, the chief executive of the National Hair and Beauty Federation, said most businesses understood the "importance of keeping themselves and their clients and colleagues safe".

Janene Bush, who owns hair salons and a barber shop in Suffolk, said it made her "cross" to hear other people in her industry were breaching the rules.

She also questioned whether a £1,000 fine was a "level playing field" when students were being fined £10,000 for holding house parties.

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