Newport considers city centre face covering restrictions to boost shopper confidence
Newport councillors are considering restricting balaclavas and other face coverings in the city centre, saying they are used by people committing crime and anti-social behaviour and make some shoppers feel anxious. The proposal is intended to help restore confidence in an area struggling to attract customers, though the council leader wants the restriction to cover the whole city.
Newport had one in five shops vacant last year, the highest share in the UK, and has since lost retailers including Marks and Spencer and River Island. A councillor-backed recommendation passed on 29 September and will be considered as officials review the city centre’s Public Space Protection Order; the proposed rules would include religious exemptions. The article also notes Nottingham’s recent face-covering restrictions, which allow on-the-spot fines of £70 and other enforcement measures.
- Newport is considering a city-centre balaclava restriction.
- One in five shops was vacant last year.
- The proposal includes religious exemptions and awaits further consideration.
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Newport is considering new rules to ban or restrict face coverings like balaclavas in its city centre, hoping the measure will make shoppers feel safer and more confident visiting the area. The council believes that such coverings are associated with crime and anti-social behaviour that deter customers from local businesses.
The Welsh city faces serious challenges in its retail sector. Last year Newport had one in five shops standing empty—the highest vacancy rate of any UK city—and major retailers including Marks and Spencer and River Island have left the area, leaving fewer reasons for people to shop there.
Such restrictions are not unprecedented in the UK. Nottingham has already implemented similar rules and can issue on-the-spot fines of £70 to those who breach them. Any new rules in Newport would include exemptions for religious face coverings, allowing people to wear them for genuine religious purposes.
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The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Newport faces a genuine crisis with the highest shop vacancy rate in the UK, and business owners report that crime and anti-social behaviour linked to obscured faces are actively deterring customers and investment. A modest, targeted restriction in the city centre, with religious exemptions and following Nottingham's precedent, is a proportionate measure to restore public confidence and help revive the local economy whilst addressing specific security concerns undermining the area's viability.
The case against
Restricting face coverings infringes on personal freedom and risks disproportionately affecting vulnerable people who wear them for legitimate reasons—rough sleepers, those with medical conditions, people protecting privacy, and others exercising basic autonomy. The evidence linking face coverings to crime is unclear, and targeting them treats a symptom rather than addressing deeper economic forces driving retail decline, whilst normalising state control over dress and potentially stigmatising communities without solving Newport's underlying problems.
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Originally published by Daily Mail as “City with ‘Britain’s worst High Street’ considers banning balaclavas in bid to lure back shoppers scared by ‘intimidating’ youths”.