PUBS and shops could remain closed until mid-July after the Government quietly extended Covid lockdown laws.

No firm date has been put on the end of the current lockdown, which was announced by the Prime Minister on January 4, with officials saying the rate and spread of the virus must be curbed before any easing of restrictions. 

Now, the Government has quietly extended coronavirus lockdown laws, giving local authorities in England the power to close pubs, restaurants, shops and public spaces until July 17.

This means prolonged uncertainty for many in the hard-hit hospitality sector.

Existing lockdown laws, which were due to expire on January 17, have been extended by six months, the Department for Health and Social Care confirmed.

A spokesperson said the extension gives local authorities "the robust powers needed to continue to control the spread of the virus, both during and after national restrictions".

Since January 5, people have not been allowed to leave their homes other than for essential reasons, including work, for exercise once a day and to meet a support or childcare bubble - or risk being fined.

All non-essential shops, leisure facilities and personal care businesses were also forced to close, though many had already met this fate due to Tier 4 restrictions in the North-East.

However, Boris Johnson said this morning that the Government will be “looking at the potential of relaxing some measures” before mid-February. He could not give a guarantee schools would be back before Easter.

Last week Mr Johnson signalled that he will take a cautious approach to easing restrictions in an attempt to make it the last national lockdown to combat the coronavirus pandemic.

He said on Friday the “far more sensible approach” is to reopen “safely and cautiously”, starting with schools, to prevent a rapid resurgence of infection rates.

He will likely face opposition from Conservative backbenchers who are eager for him to release the restrictions as soon as the most vulnerable groups receive some immunity from vaccination.

Chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty warned even a “very small change” with cases so high could cause a rapid resurgence while chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance warned against “getting too hooked” on specific dates for easing measures.

It comes as a further 32 mass vaccination open across the country this week, including one in Sunderland, as the vaccine rollout gains momentum.

It was revealed last week that around two-thirds of people aged 80 and over in northern England have now received their first dose of Covid vaccine.

For the North-East and Yorkshire, 67 per cent of people aged 80 and over, one of the priority groups for the vaccine, have had a jab to protect them against Covid. 

Meanwhile, Health Secretary Matt Hancock yesterday warned the Government is still a “long, long, long way off” being able to lift lockdown restrictions in England.

Three-quarters of people over the age of 80 have now been vaccinated with Mr Hancock saying the vaccination programme was making “brilliant progress”.

Despite saying there was clear evidence to suggest lockdown restrictions were working the health secretary said that case numbers were still “incredibly high”.

“There is early evidence that the lockdown is starting to bring cases down but we are a long, long, long way from being low enough because the case rate was incredibly high,” he told Sky News’s Sophy Ridge on Sunday programme.

“You can see the pressure on the NHS – you can see it every day.”

A DHSC spokesperson said: “Given the vital role local authorities have to play in reducing transmission in communities and protecting public health, the Health and Social Care Secretary has extended the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (England) (No. 3) Regulations 2020 for a further six months to give local authorities the robust powers needed to continue to control the spread of the virus, both during and after national restrictions.”