Pennies can be opened up to 24 hours after the lockdown ends.

Chief executive George Weston said more trading time would be allowed to recoup lost profits after being forced to close its doors to Ireland for six weeks.

Primers in England will be closed for a month from tomorrow.

Extended opening hours will allow more staff and customer security in the store.

Chief Executive George Weston said Telegraph: “If we can do business 24 hours a day in some stores, we can easily separate people from each other.

We can keep stores safe if we know that “a store does not have to be crowded in six hours if everyone knows that there are plenty of trading hours”.

Weston said the move would be a big step forward for the brand and would allow them to sell their Christmas stock in advance. Christmas Day on December 25th.

He added that this would alleviate the panic among consumers who are unable to complete Christmas shopping.

The Penny Bose said: “It gives confidence that consumers will have time to do Christmas shopping on High Street between December 2 and 24.

“This will allow my business to sell a lot of Christmas stock.

“I think it would be a big step to allow High Street to extend its working hours.”

The company shattered shopkeepers’ expectations yesterday after it refused to open an online store during the lockdown.

A penny spokesman said Irish Mirror : “We look at alternative business models from time to time, but there are no immediate plans to trade online.

“We will definitely be showcasing our products on social media and on our website. Our social media channels have over 22 million followers.”