The Dutch government has decided to extend its blockade until at least February 9, due to the continued high number of infections by Covid-19 and the presence of the most contagious variant of the coronavirus in the United Kingdom.
“We are very concerned about this variant,” Prime Minister Mark Rutte told a news conference on Tuesday. According to restrictions, social contacts are limited to two people at home, traveling outside the country is not recommended, people are advised to work from home and schools, restaurants and non-essential stores remain closed.
Belgium also extended its blockade for another two weeks last Friday, amid an increase in infections, as people returned from vacation, despite the authorities strongly advising against traveling abroad. As of Wednesday, the country had an average of 2,000 infections a day, an increase of 30% compared to the end of December. More than 20,000 people have died in Belgium since the pandemic began.
In Germany, the authorities continued to increase restrictions on movement and socialization. The state of Bavaria has become one of the first governments in the world to make it mandatory to use high-quality N95 masks, which can block viruses, in public transport and in stores.
In Berlin, state authorities have banned residents from traveling more than 15 km outside the capital as soon as the number of new cases in the last seven days exceeds 200 per 100,000 inhabitants – a level that is expected to be reached later this week as infections continue to increase.
Cases in Europe’s most populous country recovered after a holiday-induced drop. Germany recorded 19,600 new cases on Tuesday, according to the Robert Koch Institute for Infectious Diseases, roughly in line with the previous week’s level, with 1,060 new Covid-19-related deaths recorded in one day.
The current blockade may extend beyond the end of January and stricter restrictions may be needed to prevent the spread of the most infectious variant of the virus, Health Minister Jens Spahn told Deutschlandfunk public radio.