Wednesday newspaper round-up: lockdown inconsistencies, Boots, hotels

Bars, restaurants, hairdressers and churches face a minefield, privacy campaigners have warned, after the government instructed them to record people’s contact details in case they need to assist with test-and-trace efforts. From 4 July, hospitality businesses and other venues in England will be able to reopen. To minimise customer contact, restaurants will be limited to table service inside, Boris Johnson said on Tuesday, and will be asked to help NHS Test and Trace “by collecting contact details from customers, as happens in other countries”. He added: “We will work with the sector to make this manageable.” - Guardian

The government has given the green light to a night out in a pub or restaurant in England but gym workouts, swimming pools, nightclub dance floors and even manicures are still off limits – prompting accusations of glaring inconsistencies as the lockdown is eased. The chief executive of PureGym, the UK’s biggest gym chain, said he was “bitterly disappointed” by the delay in opening its 269 gyms and questioned the government’s commitment to tackling obesity. “It is a strange war on obesity that sees pubs and restaurants open before gyms,” said Humphrey Cobbold who highlighted that the company had already safely reopened its gyms in Switzerland and Denmark. – Guardian

Boots is continuing to withhold rent payments from its stores' landlords - despite being allowed to stay open throughout the coronavirus pandemic. Bosses said trading had been hit hard by a footfall slump during lockdown and it has yet to pay some landlords while talks continue. – Telegraph

Hotels and restaurants were flooded with customer bookings after ministers gave vast swathes of the hospitality industry permission to reopen on July 4, raising hopes of a rapid summer recovery for thousands of ailing businesses. Pent-up demand from consumers eager to dine out and holiday in Britain led to a surge in reservations following Boris Johnson’s announcement, forcing some businesses to take down their websites as they worked through the backlog. – Telegraph

The investment industry is facing tougher new rules on capital, liquidity and pay under a post-Brexit shake-up planned by the City regulator. The Financial Conduct Authority is working on a new framework to improve the governance of fund managers from next summer. The move comes after the demise of Neil Woodford’s multibillion-pound Equity Income Fund last year and after property funds were frozen. – The Times