Wetherspoons says 66 workers have tested positive for coronavirus with 50 pubs affected

The UK's biggest pub chain has recorded more than 66 outbreaks of coronavirus at 50 branches in the UK.

Wetherspoon's boss Tim Martin said that 66 employees have tested positive for Covid-19, but defended claims that pubs are no longer safe to visit.

It comes as Boris Johnson's new 'rule of six' comes into force in England, with public gatherings now limited to just six indoors and in public.

The chain, which employs more than 41,564 people, said the vast majority of its 861 pubs had recorded no positive tests for the virus.

Aberdeen University's Prof Pennington said last month that pubs are "far, far more dangerous places to be" when discussing sending children back to school during the pandemic.

However, Wetherspoon's boss Tim Martin dismissed claims that pubs are "dangerous".

He said: "The situation with regard to pubs has been widely misunderstood.

"It is clearly not the case that pubs are 'dangerous places to be'."

He said Wetherspoon has invested around £15million on comprehensive social distancing and hygiene measures, including reducing capacity, spacing out tables, the installation of screens between tables and around tills, and an average of 10 hand sanitisers per pub.

"The data we have shows that the infection rate has risen, mainly due to social interactions, particularly private household gatherings," said Mr Martin.

"In shops and hospitality venues there are strict measures in place to ensure they are Covid-free, whereas it is much easier to inadvertently pass on the virus in someone’s house, where people are more relaxed and less vigilant."

Since reopening on July 4, Wetherspoons said some 32million people had visited its 861 open pubs.

It said of the 50 affected, 40 have reported one worker testing positive for the coronavirus and six pubs have disclosed two.

"Most of the reported cases have been mild or asymptomatic and 28 of the 66 employees have already returned to work, after self-isolating in accordance with medical guidelines," a spokesman said.

In addition, two pubs reported three staff testing positive and two pubs said four workers had.

Martin added that without the hospitality sector, the public could be forced to socialise in unsupervised circumstances.

"If pubs are closed, or restricted so much that they become unprofitable, a great deal of the strenuous effort of the hospitality industry’s 3.2million employees, currently engaged on upholding hygiene and social distancing standards, will be lost - leaving the public to socialise at home or elsewhere, in unsupervised circumstances.

"Although it is clearly possible for Covid-19 infections to take place in pubs and shops, the evidence indicates that the risk is low, provided social distancing and hygiene rules are followed, and common sense is used, in line with the views of Professor Giesecke and Councillor Ward."