The Dutch government on Thursday extended flight bans between the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, South Africa and the Dominican Republic, as well as most of South America, until April 1, in an attempt to prevent the spread of new coronavirus mutations. regions.
In a letter to Parliament, the executive explained that it had extended the air traffic ban with the United Kingdom, South Africa, Brazil, Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela, Suriname, Guyana for another four weeks. French and Guyana, as well as Panama and the Dominican Republic.
The measure is taken on the recommendation of the Pandemic Management Team (WTO), which advises the Executive on a one-year basis to take appropriate action and stop the spread of infections, in which case the possible import of more contagious coronavirus variants than those already circulating in European Union.
The ban applies under the same conditions as on 23 January, when it entered into force, so it does not apply, among other exceptions, to the carriage of goods by air, health workers or patients requiring medical treatment in the Netherlands, in the Netherlands residents or nationals who intends to return home or to citizens of the Schengen area who are “transiting to another European country” and do not have the Netherlands as their final destination.
However, the official recommendation of the Dutch government is to avoid travel to and from abroad to avoid the spread of the virus. “It is recommended that you do not travel to the Netherlands unless it is strictly necessary,” he says on his website.
The Dutch executive also extended until March 15, the closure of the Netherlands and the daily weather between 21:00 local time (20:00 GMT) and 04:30 (03:30 GMT), although since yesterday allowed hairdressers and other professions to contact, such as massage centers or tattoos, return to receive customers with hygiene measures.
The stores, which closed in mid-December to prevent the virus from spreading due to Christmas shopping, partially reopened yesterday, being able to receive customers only on a scheduled basis and with a capacity limit per floor, which led to some businesses that decided not to reopen because the number of people to receive did not offset the expenses.
In addition, pressure on the incumbent is also increasing to allow the terraces to reopen as the good weather begins, prompting several bars and restaurants to rebel on Tuesday, opening their terraces to the public against restrictions, although most they had to close again immediately due to threats of fines.
A study by I&O Research published on Thursday shows that six out of ten Dutch people believe that the terraces of restaurants and cafes should be able to open safely.