M&S has announced that it will be opening its stores at specific times just for NHS and emergency services personnel.

The news comes at a time when NHS and emergency service workers are struggling to buy essential every-day items owing to the on-going irrational ‘panic buying’ that has swept across the country

Despite there not be any reason to, shoppers are still clearing the shelves of supermarkets within hours of the stores opening.

But for the men and women who are on shifts working hard to keep us all safe, stopping off at the shop on the way home only to find that there is nothing left on the shelves is causing even more distress amongst overworked first responders and NHS staff.

In an announcement, a spokesperson for the supermarket said:

‘Supporting our customers and communities during this difficult time is our number one priority. We want to make sure everyone has access to the items they need, so we are setting aside the first hour of trading on certain days for our older and vulnerable customers, and for our brilliant NHS and emergency workers.

‘For older and vulnerable customers, this will start tomorrow, Friday 20th March, and going forward after that, on Mondays and Thursdays.

‘For NHS and emergency workers, this will be Tuesdays and Fridays’

The announcement does not include franchise stores in petrol stations and railway stations.

Despite many stores announcing that they are also allocating specific times of the day for the elderly and the vulnerable, the result of these measures has been mixed.

Many elderly and vulnerable shoppers who have attended such opening times have said that there is just as much ‘panic buying’ and ‘chaos’ as there was before.

People have called for more to be done by the supermarkets to ensure that ‘hoarders’ do not clear the shelves, leaving nothing for anyone else who is not able to get to the shops during the morning rush.

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