Derbyshire police chief comments as new face covering rules come into force

Coverings are now mandatory in places like supermarkets, indoor shopping centres and takeaways in a bid to help stop the spread of coronavirus.

MORE: Chesterfield loses another shop as Thorntons closes its doors for good

Police can hand out fines of up to £100 to individuals who do not comply – but some retailers say they will not enforce the rule.

Kem Mehmet, Assistant Chief Constable of Derbyshire Constabulary, said: “We will engage with anyone not following the new regulations on face coverings and explain why they are required to wear one.

"If someone refuses to wear a covering, and they are not exempt under the regulations, then we do have the power to issue fines but enforcement will be a last resort, as it has always been.

“We will be contacting retailers to encourage them to engage with customers who are not wearing a face covering before contacting the police.

“There are no plans to increase police presence in the county’s shopping areas purely to enforce the wearing of face coverings.

"Our communities know that we all have a responsibility to stop the spread of Covid-19 and we are sure that the new regulations will be widely supported by the public of Derbyshire.”

The force has created an information sheet for retailers around the new legislation.

The information sheet can be viewed on Derbyshire Constabulary’s website.

MORE: Well-known and 'irreplaceable' Staveley school teacher retires

A message from the editor

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

In order for us to continue to provide high quality and trusted local news on this free-to-read site, I am asking you to also please purchase a copy of our newspaper.

Our journalists are highly trained and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards in the world. But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news and information by buying a copy of our newspaper.

Thank you

Nancy Fielder, editor