Will you wear a mask after July 19? Readers have their say

They spoke out today as Prime Minister Boris Johnson prepared to ease social distancing restrictions.

While some said they did not intend to wear masks after July 19, others said they would continue to do so even if they were no longer a legal requirement in shops, and in certain areas of pubs and restaurants.

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EDWARD MATTHYSEN: “No, otherwise the government should make it illegal to take any risks, meaning no more cycling in the UK as you are 15 times more likely to be killed on a bicycle than in a car.

ELISHA O’NEILL: “Yes I’ve just had Covid so I know it’s still about.”

LAURA SIMPSON: “Yeah I will - I quite like not getting 17 colds in a year.”

ALICIA LEWIS: “Yes I definitely will be.”

ROBERT SANDERS: “The clown is ending restrictions and face masks - this should not be happening yet it is all at once.”

MATT MARSDEN: Robert Sanders - get a grip.”

STEVE HILL: “Now why on earth would anybody do that? Be under no illusions: Boris Johnson is handing the baton over to us.

“So that anything that goes wrong (and it will) is going to be our fault from now on.”

JAMES CARNEGIE: “Haven’t worn one yet so don’t plan on starting now. Why would I restrict my oxygen in exchange for re-inhaling what my body is designed to expel? That would just be foolish and hazardous to my health and let’s face it if it can escape a level 4 biohazard facility do u really thing your little muzzles will stop it?”

RICKY NILSSON: “James Carnegie imagine, we have been in this situation for well over a year and you still do not have a basic grasp about how any of this works

“That requires not only ignorance, but an active effort from you to maintain your ignorance.”

STEVE HILL: “James Carnegie You really do take ignorance to another level, possibly not of this universe.

IZA BELLA: “No.”

​DOUG TORRENT-LIM: “Especially if you have a cough or cold - one thing we’ve learned from all this is how easily germs are spread.”

JOSE RODRIGUES: “Doug Torrent-Lim that is taught at school - we don’t need a pandemic to learn that.”

RICKY NILSSON: “In general I think it will go back to not wearing a face mask as a default. But what would be good to maintain is where, if we feel that we got a cold, flu, cough etc and still need to go out, that we wear a mask as a courtesy to others.

If there’s anything we should adopt from all of this it’s that... that and people washing their hands after going to the toilet. It was rather disturbing to find out how few people actually didn’t do that.”

SJ JAMES: “Yes.”

SAJEEL NASAR: “No way.”

THOMAS WENSLEY: “Yes.”

MARIE HENDERSON: “Yes I will.”

LILIANA PASALAU: “Yes ,we should still wear them indoors.”

NINA SUTTON: “Yes it means that vulnerable people can still go out. You need to protect them and yourselves.”

ROBBIE COLLINS: “If we have to wear them then people who refuse the jab should be made to have it!”

MAGGIE GOSS: “Yes.”

ANNE RIXON: “Yes, I think this will be the most confusing part now. Personal responsibility I believe?”

OXFORD MAIL READER: “It’s not about your own safety, it’s about care for other people’s health.

“For the time being I will continue to wear one in indoor settings out of care for those there, particularly the staff.

“In many parts of South East Asia it’s completely normal to wear a face covering if feeling a bit under the weather.

“I would very much like to see that becoming habit in the West too.

“It feels like common sense.”

OXFORD MAIL READER: “You think it’s pleasant walking around seeing people wearing them?

“ Ithink the sight of them alone is awful. Think they have a terrible affect on mental health. It may not affect you that way but it does.

“The sooner they’re done away with, the better.”

OXFORD MAIL READER: “So your personal aesthetic preferences are more important than public health. Interesting.

“Please explain how wearing a mask on a bus or a train, or in the 15 minutes you spend inside your supermarket shopping affects anyone’s mental health.”