The government initially introduced extended opening hours in the runup to Christmas in a bid to make socially distanced shopping easier.

It’s now confirmed that longer opening hours in England will continue when non-essential shops re-open from 12 April at the earliest. Shops will be allowed to stay open until 10pm from Monday to Saturday.

Communities secretary Robert Jenrick said the move will give people greater flexibility to avoid peak times and ease transport pressures.

As part of the £56m ‘Welcome Back Fund’ announced last week, Jenrick is encouraging councils to continue supporting social distancing measures and relaxing planning rules where possible to ensure people can continue to keep a safe distance on our high streets.

The government is also extending flexible working hours on construction sites, allowing food deliveries to supermarkets over more time periods, and keeping the flexibility for pubs and restaurants to erect marquees to help increase seating capacity in a Covid-secure way.

Jenrick said: “To support businesses to reopen and recover, I’ve extended measures to allow shops to stay open for longer. This is part of a package of support to help reopen our shops and high-streets safely – backed by £56m.

“This will provide a much-needed boost for many businesses – protecting jobs, reducing pressure on public transport and supporting people and communities to continue to visit their high streets safely and shop locally.”

The news comes as retail sales started a slow recovery from the pandemic.