Morrisons becomes first large supermarket to reinstate Covid rationing

Morrisons has become the first large supermarket to reinstate rationing on items such as toilet roll and disinfectant after the tightening of coronavirus measures.

The supermarket chain said on Thursday t had introduced a purchase limit of three on a small range of products to ensure they were “available for everyone”. The move echoes the beginning of the first wave of Covid-19 in the UK, when supermarkets were forced to impose restrictions on purchases because of people stockpiling.

On Wednesday, the bosses of both Tesco and Aldi sought to prevent a repeat of the empty shelves seen in March by calling on shoppers to only buy what they need. Dave Lewis, the chief executive of Tesco, said stockpiling was unnecessary as there was no disruption to product supply chains as a result of the latests government measures to tackle rising Covid-19 infections.

Giles Hurley, the chief executive of Aldi UK, wrote to customers, saying: “There is no need to buy more than you usually would. I would like to reassure you that our stores remain fully stocked and ask that you continue to shop considerately.”

A spokesman for Morrisons confirmed the retailer had introduced purchasing restrictions on a small number of key products. “Our stock levels of these products are good but we want to ensure that they are available for everyon,” he said.

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