This petition was submitted during the 2019-2024 parliament
Rejected petition Allow garden centres to reopen under lockdown with social distancing measures.
In time for Easter, allow garden centres to reopen and sell their huge stock of plants. Visitors can queue for entry like they do for supermarkets to maintain social distancing.
More details
2,000 garden centres and nurseries have been ordered to close.
The Horticultural Trades Association says millions of plants, shrubs and trees could be binned in the coming days and weeks.
This would bring ruin for UK growers.
Reopening would avoid this huge waste, bring joy to the 23 million gardeners, allow the country to bloom in these dark times and save the UK garden industry.
Garden centres should be an essential retail outlet.
BBC article: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-52098436
This petition was rejected
Why was this petition rejected?
We can't publish petitions when the request is something that's already happening or something that has been announced since you started your petition.
We think your petition is covered by Government or Parliament action already. If you'd like something else, you could start a new petition clearly explaining what it is.
Since you started your petition the Government has added garden centres and plant nurseries to the list of businesses that are permitted to open: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/further-businesses-and-premises-to-close/further-businesses-and-premises-to-close-guidance
You can find out more about coronavirus and how you can protect yourself and others here:
www.gov.uk/coronavirus
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
The Government has also created an online service to help you out what you can do if you’re struggling because of coronavirus: https://www.gov.uk/find-coronavirus-support
You can read NHS tips to help if you are worried about coronavirus here: https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou/every-mind-matters/coronavirus-covid-19-anxiety-tips
You can read impartial analysis of the Government response to coronavirus and policy developments here: https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/coronavirus/
You may also be interested to know that because of the large number of petitions that have been started in relation to coronavirus, the Petitions Committee has been questioning the Government about its response to the coronavirus outbreak.
Find out more and watch the Committee put questions suggested by petitioners to Government Ministers and the Deputy Chief Medical Officer: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/326/petitions-committee/news/145767/committee-question-deputy-chief-medical-officer-and-ministers-on-coronavirus-response/
Read letters asking further questions of Government Ministers: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/326/petitions-committee/publications/3/correspondence/
We only reject petitions that don’t meet the petition standards.