Stricter guidelines for those who are exempt from wearing a face covering.

Rejected 13 signatures

What the petition asks

Due to the number of people claiming they can’t use a face covering, the government should issue an official exemption based on individual medical evidence. Having spent the last 4 months shielding, it is important that as many people are using face coverings and social distancing whilst we are out.

If an official system is in place then it will provide support to businesses when it comes to refusing entry to those not complying. It is very easy for someone to say the can’t wear any sort of covering and not been challenged. For the safety of people, a system needs to be put in place to prevent accusations of discrimination. We are in the middle of a pandemic and this virus does not discriminate. With shielding being paused, these measures need tighter guidelines to protect everyone.

Why it was rejected

It was not clear what the petition asked the UK Government or Parliament to do.

People do not need to wear a face covering if they have a legitimate reason to, and the Government's guidance on face coverings sets out a range of reasons that this includes: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/face-coverings-when-to-wear-one-and-how-to-make-your-own/face-coverings-when-to-wear-one-and-how-to-make-your-own#exemptions-to-wearing-a-face-covering-where-they-are-mandated

It is not clear if your petition is about all exemptions from wearing face coverings, or just exemptions for medical reasons.

You could start a petition calling on the Government to only exempt people from the requirement to wear a face covering in shops on medical grounds, certified by a doctor, if that is what you want to happen.

You can find out more about coronavirus and how you can protect yourself and others here:

www.gov.uk/coronavirus
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/

The Government has also created an online service to help you find out what you can do if you’re struggling because of coronavirus: https://www.gov.uk/find-coronavirus-support

You can read NHS tips to help if you are worried about coronavirus here: https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou/every-mind-matters/coronavirus-covid-19-anxiety-tips

You can read impartial analysis of the Government response to coronavirus and policy developments here: https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/coronavirus/

You may also be interested to know that because of the large number of petitions that have been started in relation to coronavirus, the Petitions Committee has been questioning the Government about its response to the coronavirus outbreak.

Find out more: https://committees.parliament.uk/work/192/the-governments-response-to-coronavirus/

Timeline

20 Jul 2020	Petition opened for signatures
27 Jul 2020	Rejected by the Petitions Committee

Key facts

Signatures 13

Status Rejected

Rejected 27 Jul 2020

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