Looks like Christmas is coming early this year! At least for Dutch primary school children. The extended holiday will start next week to curb all those coronavirus infections at elementary schools. 

The cabinet has decided to, finally, follow the pressing advice of the Outbreak Management Team and close primary schools a week earlier than originally planned, reports the NOS. 

Parents with young children can breathe a sigh of relief however, childcare services will remain open, RTL Nieuws reports. Schools are also asked to organise daycare for children from vulnerable families. 

No exact dates just yet

Sources remain unclear about when this early holiday will begin and when school will resume. Because it is on such short notice, schools are given some leeway regarding the early closing. 

Schools are meant to reopen sometime between January 11 to January 14. Hopefully, tonight’s press conference will make things a little clearer. 

Why the early closure?

There are two main reasons for the decision:

Children under 12 are not yet vaccinated and it is naturally difficult for young kids to keep their distance from one another. Unsurprisingly, infection rates have been high compared to other age groups. 

Still, the decision might come as a bit of a surprise. The cabinet has long opposed the idea of closing schools early. Frequent closures of schools and remote learning have raised concerns about the quality of education of Dutch youngsters. 

Concern about omicron

However, many questions about the omicron variant remain unanswered and infection rates are stable but high. 

“We still know very little about the variant, but what we know, is not very reassuring,” Dutch health minister De Jonge tells RTL Nieuws.

Press conference will provide more answers

The new coronavirus measures will be officially announced during the press conference tonight at 7 PM. This will hopefully shed more light on how long schools will remain closed and if there will be other measures set in place. 

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We all know that the Dutch like a good feestje (party). So with the 5 PM evening lockdown in place for a couple of weeks now (and extended until January) — they had to get creative. The solution? An app!

Thousands of house parties have been organized with the help of an app called Amigos, reports the NOS. This goes against standing government advice to keep the number of guests at home to a four person maximum. 

But are we really all that surprised? After all, Dutch youths are known for finding creative solutions to their lockdown-induced party detox — be it heading over the border to Germany or using apps and WhatsApp groups to dodge restrictions.

What’s the app about?

The app Amigos was developed prior to the pandemic with the noble aim to help tackle loneliness among young people. 

With one lockdown following the other, the app has gained increasing popularity — and the 5 PM avondclock has notably boosted its downloads. 

Founder Johanan Fraanje tells the NOS that in the last two weeks, the number of users went up from 109,000 to 184,000!  

Thousands of parties every week 

“It’s a bit like Tinder for social contact”, says Fraanje. If someone wants to organise an event, such as a house party, they can register it on the app. Amigos then shows it to other users in that area. 

About 20,000 events are registered per week and 34% fall into the category borrel or feestje. 

If someone is interested, they can ask to join in. It’s up to the organiser of the event to accept or reject potential guests. 

Is it legal?

Obviously, having a house party — or any event, really — is not in line with current governmental advice at the moment. However, because having no more than four guests at home is only urgent advice, not a hard rule, Dutch party-enthusiasts happily take the risk. 

The founder of Amigos brushes off all responsibility. “Like Facebook and WhatsApp, this is an open platform where users are responsible for what they organise themselves. It’s not up to us to forbid it,” he tells the NOS. He also says that doesn’t earn money from the app. 

What do you think of apps like Amigos? Tell us in the comments!

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Since coronavirus only comes out after 5 PM, new leaks from the Dutch cabinet reveal that they plan to extend the current measures — including the evening lockdown — until the beginning of next year.

Sometimes, our hands are tied when it comes to the news we must report — this is one of those times. Until at least the beginning of January, the Dutch will be unable to enjoy catering, non-essential shops, or working towards a weight-related new year’s resolution at gyms after 5 PM.

Thinking of hosting a Christmas event at home? Think again, because (holiday or not) the advice to receive a maximum of four people at home also remains, according to the NOS.

As for the rumours of extending Christmas break in schools to limit the spread of coronavirus, the outgoing cabinet is still in session regarding this point and will bless us with a decision during tomorrow’s press conference.

The Netherlands after dark

Well, something seems to be working with these new measures as last week’s numbers had an optimistic vibe where the number of infections, hospitalisations, and deaths slightly decreased.

That being said, the Dutch Outbreak Management Team (OMT) will not be easing up on its advice anytime soon. They have explicitly warned the Dutch government against relaxing any measures due to the uncertainty around the Omikron variant and the high pressure on healthcare.

Since a new Dutch government cabinet is expected to take over at the beginning of January, the new cabinet will find more and more on their plate.”The new cabinet must get to work without a good reopening plan,” says political reporter Xander van der Wulp.

What do you think of the Dutch government’s plans to extend the current measures until January 2022? Tell us in the comments!

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