BelgiumTerraces to reopen 8 May, under two conditions
Belgium's "open-air" plan is due to kick in on 8 May, allowing restaurant and bar terraces to reopen, among others.
Minister of Health, Frank Vandenbroucke, explained that this reopening would be subject to two conditions:
- Progress observed in the vaccination campaign. Vandenbroucke expressed optimism on this count, saying more than 1.2 million doses of Covid vaccines will be delivered to Belgium over the next two weeks. This could allow 70% of those aged 65 and over to be vaccinated.
- An improvement of the situation in hospitals “in a sustainable way”. The Minister of Health indicated that currently, there are only 92 vacant intensive care beds left throughout the country - less than one bed per hospital. The easing of restrictions will be wholly dependent on pressure reducing in hospitals.
Vandenbroucke said the assessment would be made closer to the projected date. He also addressed criticisms aired by the restaurant sector, in particular an open letter from restaurateur Valérie Migliore, who highlighted that nothing had changed in 10 months of closures.
The minister said all sectors were capable of promising to run their business safely, but the risks would never drop to zero. He said he commiserated with the frustrations, but maintained it was wrong to say that the hygiene measures had not been effective.
