Marks and Spencer apologizes over Muslim staff policy.

Marks and Spencer apologizes over Muslim staff policy.(Telegraph).

Marks and Spencer says shoppers won't be refused alcohol by staff as it claims a failure to follow internal policy led to a shopper being told to queue elsewhere because a Muslim worker couldn't serve them alcohol.

Customers at Marks and Spencer will not be refused alcohol or pork by Muslim staff after the store reacted to a massive backlash by customers.

Thousands of shoppers threatened to boycott the retailer after Marks and Spencer said it would allow Muslim staff to refuse to sell pork and alcohol because it was against their religious beliefs.

But now Marks and Spencer has apologised and said that Muslim staff who did not want to handle these products would not man tills and would work in other roles such as in clothing or in the bakery.

The issue was revealed after customers at a London branch of Marks and Spencer were told they would have to use another till because the assistant would not be able to serve them pork or alcohol.

At the time Marks and Spencer said staff could refuse to sell these items, based on their religious beliefs. This led to a huge backlash by thousands of customers who threatened to boycott the store.

Marks and Spencer last night apologised and said it had made a mistake and was not following its internal policies.

In a statement, Marks and Spencer said: “Where we have an employee whose religious beliefs restrict food or drink they can handle, we work closely with our member of staff to place them in suitable role, such as in our clothing department or bakery in foods.

“We regret that in the case highlighted today we were not following our own internal policy.”

Angry customers created a Facebook page, calling on others to boycott the retailer. Some claimed it was creating “division” in communities while others said if this policy was followed they would have to allow Christians who opposed homosexuality to refuse to serve gay customers.