Please note, if you find the following convincing, also sign the petition on the official government website

In England and Scotland, face masks are currently mandatory on public transport, due to the risk of transmission when in an enclosed space in which it is difficult to keep a 2 metre distance from others. They should also be mandatory in other similar indoor public spaces, such as shops, workplaces, schools, cinemas, theatres, museums, and places of worship all across the UK.

The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) have recently projected that if mask wearing is not enforced in the UK we will enter October with 13,353 new cases of COVID-19 per day, as opposed to 58 new cases per day if 95% of the population wear masks. If this projection is correct, universal masking will effectively prevent a second wave.

The IHME based their modelling on meta-analysis of peer-reviewed scientific studies and medRxiv pre-prints, all of which contribute to the increasing scientific consensus that cloth masks, whether homemade or commercial, slow community spread of COVID-19.

Initially, it was thought that COVID-19 was mainly spread through people touching infected surfaces and then touching their faces, but it has since become increasingly clear that it is primarily transmitted through droplets expelled when infected people cough or speak, and a large amount of these people do not have symptoms. Mask wearing helps block these droplets, thus reducing transmission.

A recent study has shown that countries with widespread mask wearing saw death rates grow 8% a week, on average, versus 54% growth in other countries. Take Hong Kong, for instance. With 7.5 million residents, it is one of the most densely populated places on earth, but has recorded only 6 deaths from COVID-19 despite never entering full lockdown.

Furthermore, regional disparities within countries seem to be explainable in terms of widespread use of face masks. For example, analysis by the Philadelphia Inquirer found that, over the two weeks preceding the 24th of June, cases rose by 84% in US states that do not require wearing masks in public, while in states where mask wearing is mandatory, cases fell by 25%.

And in terms of individual businesses, there is increasing evidence suggesting that face masks will make it far safer for them to reopen. For instance, in Missouri two hair stylists working in a salon which required both staff and customers to wear masks were diagnosed with COVID-19, but transmitted the disease to none of the 140 customers they engaged with while infected.

The conclusion is inescapable. To avoid thousands more deaths and the necessity of another economically damaging lockdown, face masks must become mandatory in public indoor spaces in the UK.