The Generalitat Valenciana will not require the production of a covid passport to eat or drink on the bar or restaurant terraces despite it’s authorisation by the Superior Court of Justice.
The president of the Generalitat, Ximo Puig, had announced on Tuesday the intention of the Consell to extend the requirement of the document to terraces, however, he has since confirmed that the endorsement was not finally requested.
The proposal was considered by experts in Public Health and Epidemiology as unnecessary, a decision that was welcomed by the hospitality sector.
Neither will there be any further trading restrictions, such as the curtailment of opening hours or the reintroduction of a curfew. Covid certificates will, though, now be required across all of the hospitality industry, with the exception of terraces, regardless of the size of the premises, as well as in gyms, indoor swimming pools, cinemas and circuses. The TSJ has also confirmed that the requirement will be extended until 31 January.
There will also be a requirement to wear masks outdoors as of December 24 and until further notice. The requirement is being introduced, despite the objections of the Madrid Parliament, in order to deal with the scourge of the omicron variant, which has led Spain to have an incidence of 784 cases in 14 days per 100,000 inhabitants and to reach a record of infections, with more than 60,000 in a single day.
Prime Minister Sanchez said that the re-introduction on the use of the mask outdoors is the only restrictive measure that Spain will have for the moment, as the country aspires to control the sixth wave of the virus with this protection as well as a boost in vaccinations.
Ximo Puig said that the Consell broadly agreed with the revised measures and he will now put the focus on the acceleration of revaccination with a greater availability of doses.
He announced two measures to promote speeding up of third doses stating that Infants, Primary and Secondary students (vaccinated with AstraZeneca) will receive the booster before returning to the classrooms on January 10, and all older Valencians 60-year-olds will have it before the end of the year.
He also demanded the activation of a new covid fund (or a similar mechanism) in the face of spending emergencies implied by the sixth wave. Sánchez confirmed that there will be the money that the situation requires.
Puig also advocated persisting in co-governance, increasing access to tests by the general public and stating that the Valencian Community defended the mandatory mask.
However, the Catalan Ombudsman, Fran Ferri, regretted these measures last night: he said that they are not based on “scientific evidence”, that it is “useless” and that it “demoralises a responsible public.”
