THE two-metre social distancing rule will continue to apply across Wales for now, despite plans to relax it to "one metre plus" in England.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced today that the "one metre plus" rule will be introduced from Saturday July 4, with people advised to take other precautions such as wearing face coverings.

Pubs, bars, restaurants and hairdressers will also reopen across England from July.

But First Minister Mark Drakeford has reiterated that the two-metre rule continues to apply in Wales, taking to Twitter with that message just minutes after the Prime Minister's announcement.

"The 2m rule remains in place in Wales to help limit the spread of the virus," tweeted Mr Drakeford.

"We keep this rule under constant review - our focus is on helping to save lives."

While that last comment indicates that Wales will relax the two-metre rule when ministers consider it safe to do so, the focus firmly remains on keeping people safe, as far as that is possible.

But the rule change in England brings yet another difference in rules into the difficult and delicate business of trying to stimulate the economy while keeping Covid-19 at bay.

Here's a full round-up of all of the changes that will take place in England in the coming days.

Two-metre rule to be reduced to one-metre plus

The two-metre rule on social distancing will be relaxed to “one-metre plus” from July 4, with people advised to take other precautions such as wearing face coverings.

The PM told the Commons: “Given the significant fall in the prevalence of the virus we can change the two-metre social distancing rule from July 4.”

He added: “Where it is possible to keep two metres apart, people should.

“But where it is not, we will advise people to keep a social distance of one metre-plus, meaning they should remain one metre apart while taking mitigations to reduce the risk of transmission.”

Indoor gatherings involving two separate households will be permitted

Families can be reunited and dinner parties will be allowed when England’s coronavirus lockdown is eased from July 4 - but millions of people will still be unable to hug their loved ones, as social distancing will need to be maintained.

With guidance replacing legislation, Mr Johnson said he was relying on people using their common sense to limit the spread of the virus.

Hotels, restaurants, pubs, cinemas and hairdressers to reopen

Hotels, restaurants, pubs, cinemas and hairdressers can reopen from July 4 providing they are “Covid-secure” and theatres and concert halls can open but cannot stage live performances.

However - nightclubs, soft play centres, indoor gyms, nail bars, beauty salons and other businesses that involve close contact will remain shut 'for now' – Mr Johnson added.

He said: “I can tell the House that we will also reopen restaurants and pubs. All hospitality indoors will be limited to table service and our guidance will encourage minimal staff and customer contact.

“We will ask businesses to help NHS Test and Trace respond to any local outbreaks by collecting contact details from customers as happens in other countries and we will work with the sector to make this manageable."

Mr Johnson added: “Almost as eagerly awaited as a pint will be a haircut, particularly by me, and so we will reopen hairdressers with appropriate precautions, including the use of visors.

“We also intend to allow some other close contact services such as nail bars to reopen as soon as we can when we are confident that they can operate in a Covid-secure way.

“From July 4, provided that no more than two households stay together, people will be free to stay overnight in self-contained accommodation including hotels and bed and breakfasts, as well as camp sites, as long as shared facilities are kept clean.”

PM: 'We do not believe there will be a second peak of coronavirus'

The Prime Minister said every step in easing the lockdown is “scrupulously weighed”.

He said: “We cannot lift all the restrictions at once so we have to make difficult judgments.

“And every step is scrupulously weighed against the evidence.”

He added: “Our principle is to trust the British public to use their common sense in the full knowledge of the risks, remembering that the more we open up, the more vigilant we will need to be.”

What else did Boris Johnson say?

Boris Johnson told MPs the common sense and perseverance of Britons has “more than justified our faith” in them, as he delivered a Covid-19 statement to the Commons.

He said: “Since I set out our plan on May 11, we have been clear that our cautious relaxation of the guidance is entirely conditional on our continued defeat of the virus.

“In the first half of May, nearly 69,000 people tested positive for Covid-19 across the UK. By the first half of June that total had fallen by nearly 70% to just under 22,000.”

What has the reaction been from politicians?

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said he welcomed the Prime Minister’s statement.

He said: “We will study the guidance, and there are obviously a number of questions that need to be answered, but overall I welcome this statement.

“I believe the Government is trying to do the right thing and in that, we will support them.”

Caroline Lucas, former leader and co-leader of the Green Party, tweeted: “PM says change in guidance is conditional on defeat of #Covid.

“Yet @IndependentSage says infections should be “consistently & significantly” below 1,000/day & they aren’t.

“Nor will test & trace system be fully operational til Sept.

“Based on Govt record, it’s hard to trust it now.”