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From Wednesday, July 1, face masks will not be mandatory in public transport, according to the amendments to the regulations “Epidemiological safety measures to limit the spread of Covid-19 infection” approved by the Cabinet of Ministers on Tuesday.
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The wearing of face masks in public transport remains of a recommendatory nature.
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However, the use of mouth and nose masks or masks is still strongly recommended if a person shows signs of a respiratory infectious disease, including a cough, runny nose in a public place, including a public transport vehicle.
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The requirement that a natural person is obliged to provide mouth and nose protection if the organizer of the event or the economic or public service provider has informed about such a requirement before the event, including by placing a notice at the venue of the event or the provision of economic or public service. The requirement to use a mouth and nose mask when going to a place of residence in isolation by public transport also remains in force.
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Also, the amendments approved by the government provide that from August, up to 3,000 people will be able to gather for outdoor events, instead of the 1000, as previously determined. This condition will apply to outdoor events with a total public space of more than 1000 square meters.
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On the other hand, the maximum number of people at indoor events remains unchanged: no more than 250 people indoors with a total public space of less than 1000 square meters and 500 people indoors with a total public space of more than 1000 square meters.
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The amendments supported by the government also provide for the waiving of time limits for outdoor sports events, while maintaining time limits for indoor events.
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Also, the space for one customer in public catering establishments is reduced from the four square meters determined so far to three square meters. From Wednesday, July 1, the restriction on the number of visitors at one table both indoors and outdoors will also be invalidated.
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The Minister of Health Ilze Hänķele (AP) pointed out that these reliefs are possible due to the good indicators of the epidemiological situation and the low incidence of Covid-19 in Latvia.
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“It must be understood that these reliefs are temporary – if the epidemiological situation worsens, then we will have to return to these restrictions,” Vineke added.
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The partial relaxation of restrictions is also justified by the fact that Latvia currently has a sufficiently large testing coverage, as the Covid-19 testing system has been significantly developed, consistently increasing the laboratory capacity. Also, at the current level of morbidity, the epidemiological surveillance system is able to identify and monitor Covid-19 patients and their contacts as accurately as possible.
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However, given that the epidemiological situation of Covid-19 is constantly monitored, in the event of a deterioration, the restrictions will be reviewed immediately and re-established if necessary.
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“The limit of four square meters per visitor for catering providers so far significantly restricts business opportunities and causes disproportionate losses to cafes, restaurants and other catering providers. any government decision that facilitates doing business, “said Minister of Economics Jānis Vitenbergs (KPV LV).
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