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AMSTERDAM — The Netherlands, the only European country to go into lockdown following the Omicron variant’s surge, will relax many of its COVID-19 measures from Wednesday despite a significant rise in cases.
“We are dealing with an extraordinary amount of infections … yet still, we decided to take some steps to reopen,” Health Minister Ernst Kuipers said Tuesday, referring to an average of 52,000 daily positive cases over the last seven days in a country of 17.5 million, according to figures from the Dutch agency for infectious diseases (RIVM).
“Keeping the most restrictive measures in effect for much longer damages our health and our society,” Kuipers said.
Restaurants, bars and cultural venues will be allowed open until 10 p.m. after having been shuttered since December 19. Patrons must be able to show proof of vaccination, recovery, or a negative test result.
The government’s decision two weeks ago to keep cultural venues and restaurants shut while opening retail stores and sports centers drew criticism from affected businesses. It led to non-compliance protests throughout the country during which cultural venues refashioned themselves as, for example, hairdressers in order to remain compliant with the regulations.
Source: Politico
