As predicted, outgoing Minister of Health, Hugo de Jonge, has announced that there will be further relaxations on Dutch coronavirus measures from Wednesday.
Rutte teased that these measures may be relaxed in last week’s press conference, saying that this would only be possible if hospitalisation figures dropped by at least 20%. Compared to last week, these have already fallen by more than 24%.
Due to this and the drop in coronavirus infections, the cabinet is happy to continue with relaxations. “What we see in the figures is a good decrease,” says outgoing minister De Jonge, “it is mainly an effect of vaccination.”
What measures will relax on Wednesday?
Given these figures and the government’s plan, from Wednesday onwards, the Dutch government will allow further relaxations. Under these, terraces will have extended opening hours, from 6 AM until 8 PM.
In addition, zoos, amusement parks, music schools, and theatres will be allowed to reopen in open-air environments. More relaxations will be introduced for sports — adults will be able to exercise outside in a team, and gyms will reopen with appointment slots.
If you want to get clued up on all the changes coming in on Wednesday, here is a handy graphic:
What do you think about De Jonge’s statement today? Is this the right time for more relaxations? Let us know in the comments!
Feature Image: William Choquette/Pexels
