‘Dying For A Drink’ Wetherspoons Boss Sparked Fury As He Insists His Bars Will Stay Open During Coronavirus Pandemic

Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister of United Kingdom, has urged people to stay away from pubs – but failed to criticise the Wetherspoon chairman after he refused to close his bars during the coronavirus crisis.

Tim Martin , Wetherspoon CEO and Conservative party donor, sparked fury in public as he claimed closing pubs was ‘over the top’ in spite of warnings from the government’s chief scientific adviser that bars are a breeding ground for the coronavirus.

Mr Martin told the BBC that a ‘sensible balance’ was for pubs to implement ‘social distancing’ measures, like no standing at the bar, using cards and sitting at separate tables.

And he didn’t stop there. He sparked further outrage as he told Sky that supermarkets posed more of a danger than pubs.

In response, the Prime Minister’s deputy official spokesman simply said the government has, ‘been clear about the importance of social distancing’.

Asked if he was nervous about criticising political supporters of Boris Johnson, the spokesman said: ‘We’ve based all our decisions on the best scientific evidence and we will continue to do so.’

And so will we.