Wootton, right-hand man to Frasers and Sports Direct tycoon Mike Ashley, told ITV News that he was “extremely irritated” that ‘non-essential’ retailers must wait until June 15 before reopening, rather than June 1 as previously expected.

Wootton told the broadcaster: “We actually think that the whole Dominic Cummings fiasco over the weekend has made [the government] hesitant to act decisively, so they’ve clearly pushed [reopening] back to the 15th of June.“