Friday night’s Press Conference had a party atmosphere
by Thomas Ansell
Dutch PM Mark Rutte and Health Minister Hugo De Jonge took to their podiums on Friday evening with a feel-good series of Coronavirus rule changes, all to take effect from June 5. The Coronavirus rule changes will be the biggest since the end of the curfew, and include raising the number of people that can gather in a house, as well as signaling the re-opening of many leisure and cultural institutions.
For the full rule changes, check out the Dutch government’s website. The move is being spoken of as ‘Step 3’ in the Dutch government’s re-opening plan, and ‘Step 4’ is planned for June 30.
Visitors at home and groups outside
People may now receive four visitors per day at home, up from the previous two. Outdoors (at the park, for example) people may now be in groups of four. Children under the age of 13 do not count towards the group size.
Cinemas, theatres, museums
After a seriously long time, museums and cultural institutions will be able to open their doors once again. Places like galleries and historic buildings can admit one person for every 10 square metres of floor space, and places like music venues, cinemas, and theatres can host up to 50 people (with designated seating and social distancing). The Dutch government has also introduced a ‘Coronavirus entry pass’ scheme for the largest venues that can hold more than 50 people safely.
Restaurants, cafés, bars
Indoor dining will also be allowed from June 5, with a maximum of four people at a table. All outlets can open from 06:00 to 22:00, and there’s a maximum amount of people in one establishment of 50. Unfortunately for football fans, the government has explicitly asked that restaurant, café, and bar owners do not show ‘live entertainment’: so we won’t be able to watch Euro 2020 on the terrace.
A little me time
Other indoor and outdoor attractions can also open, including casinos, zoos, amusement parks, and so on. Spas and saunas can also re-open, but when indoors people must don a face mask.
Weed and booze
The 20:00 end-time for all alcohol and cannabis outlets has been extended to 22:00 (but for pick-up or terrace consumption only).
