Barking and Dagenham Council enforcement officers have closed down a Barking supermarket for failing to comply with Covid regulations despite numerous warnings.



Magazin Traditional Romanesc of 49 East Street, Barking has been told to close for trading for two weeks as on 15 occasions it was found to be breaking Covid rules.



During regular visits, council enforcement officers witnessed staff and customers not wearing face coverings, regular incidents of serious overcrowding and on one visit they were told by staff that they didn’t have to wear face coverings.



Councillor Margaret Mullane, Cabinet Member for Enforcement and Community Safety said: “This business had been given lots of opportunities to change its behaviour and ensure it was following the rules but continued to ignore the advice given by officers.



“We don’t want to close businesses down as we know it is an extremely hard time for them, but they left us with no choice. I hope when they reopen, they will start to comply.”



The Barking supermarket was told to close at 12pm on Wednesday 31 March and must remain closed until 12pm on Wednesday 14 April. The shop will be visited after seven days and if significant improvements have been made, they may be allowed to open sooner.



If residents know of a business breaking the Covid rules, they can report them online.