A HM Government notice claiming alcohol is banned in the UK with immediate effect is false.

A fake post with the NHS and government logo is circulating online with the title ‘Coronavirus: Public Information.’ It goes on to detail that Simon Stevens CEO of the NHS has ‘ordered a ban on consumption of alcohol after his team have discovered that the toxin lowers immunity.’

The false claims suggest that all alcohol sales have stopped from today (29/03/20) and under emergency health legislation it is now illegal to purchase, sell and consume alcohol. The post finishes by advising:

‘Anyone caught breaching the new law will be severely sanctioned to protect everyone against the battle of Covid-19.’

Viribus News can confirm this is false information; alcohol purchase, consumption and the sale of alcohol products is not illegal for adults aged 18 and over.

If you would like up to date email alerts from the UK government relating to COVID-19 you can sign up from the link below.

https://www.gov.uk/email-signup?link=/government/topical-events/coronavirus-covid-19-uk-government-response

FAKE PUBLIC INFORMATION ADVICE CIRCULATING ONLINE