Do shops and businesses need to close during the period of National Mourning?

The country has now entered a period of National Mourning to mark the death of the Queen Elizabeth II. The mourning period began at midnight on Friday (September 9) after it was announced that Her Majesty had died peacefully at Balmoral on Thursday afternoon.

At around 6.30pm on September 8, The Royal Family confirmed that the Queen had passed away. A statement issued from Buckingham Palace read: “The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon. The King and The Queen Consort will remain at Balmoral this evening and will return to London tomorrow.”

The period of National Mourning covers the days following the Queen's death and will be in place until seven days after Her Majesty's funeral, the date of which is yet to be announced. On Friday morning the Cabinet Office released a document with guidance for organisations, businesses and the public during this time.

READ MORE: Will museums and galleries be open during the period of National Mourning?

An introduction to the document read: "National Mourning is a period of time for reflection in response to the demise of the Sovereign, or other member of the Royal Family or a very prominent person in national life.

"This guide is intended to provide the public, businesses and institutions with an explanation of National Mourning, and outline some practical advice on how you or your organisation may wish to observe public mourning during this period.

"Nevertheless, mourning is very personal and we anticipate individuals, families, communities and organisations may want to mark Her Majesty’s demise in their own way.

"There is no expectation on the public or organisations to observe specific behaviours during the mourning period. Public services will continue as usual,