Mercato Metropolitano reopens after forced closure

Mercato Metropolitano, a street market based in South London, has reopened after being forced to close by police on 2 November. 

Earlier in the week, police temporarily shut the popular food destination a few days before England’s second national lockdown after customers were seven minutes late to leave the venue.

However, after contesting the forced closure, Mercato Metropolitano posted on Twitter that it has been allowed to reopen the day before lockdown comes into effect.

A representative from the street market said: “Today the officers from the Metropolitan Police have come to our premises and informed us about their decision to overturn yesterday’s order for immediate closure.

“They’ve emphasized their praise for our full compliance with the rules and regulations during the last four years we’ve been operating in Elephant & Castle; as we appreciate their efforts and support to keep everything in line with the regulations and providing a safe place for us to operate.”

They added: “Yesterday’s incident was the reaction of an overzealous individual which we knew was not representative of the standard policies of either the Metropolitan Police or Southwark Council.”