The Hong Kong government has reversed a complete ban on dining in at restaurants, just a day after the controversial ban kicked in on July 29.

Previously, restaurant dining was banned in the city, as part of Hong Kong's social distancing measures dealing with the third wave of Covid-19.

Many workers had no place to eat

The ban, which was initially meant to be in place for a week at the onset, did not allow anyone to eat inside a restaurant, other than hospital and police canteens, according to South China Morning Post. 

However, this led many blue-collar workers within the city with nowhere to eat lunch, given how they are unable to purchase their takeaway meals and eat them at their desks, unlike office workers.

SCMP reported that the government ban was reversed after images of workers forced to eat by the side of the road surfaced online, on the first day of the ban.

According to RTHK, restaurants will now be allowed to serve its customers during breakfast and lunch time, although the ban on dining-in after 6pm will remain.

The number of people at a table will be restricted to two, and tables will need to be at least 1.5 metres apart.

Restaurants will only be allowed to accommodate only half of its seating capacity.

Meanwhile, top Chinese respiratory disease expert, Zhong Nanshan, urged the Hong Kong government to carry out city-wide testing for Covid-19, according to SCMP.

Zhong supported the restaurant dining-in ban, saying in an interview with state broadcaster CCTV that Hong Kong's challenge was not on the medical side, but a matter of containment.

He added that strict lockdown policies had been successful in mainland China, but Hong Kong was different due to its high population density, lack of space, and a lockdown would impact its economic activitiy.

He said: "So the way out is to increase testing and discover the asymptomatic patients."

Top image via 我家HoMemory/FB.