“We had a meeting with the sector this week and opinions were fifty-fifty divided. I have the feeling that the big chains don’t want an extension and the smaller ones do. I think we are leaning towards a postponement, but the decision must be made federally. ” That is what Flemish Minister of Economy Hilde Crevits said The Seventh Day on One over the bargain period.
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The minister believes that the decision should be taken quickly. “Don’t wait another fourteen days to make that decision,” she said.
Infectiologist Erika Vlieghe stated in De Zevende Dag that she had no problem with the reopening of the stores. “Shopping in itself may not be a risk, which is why we never said that the stores should be closed,” she said. According to her, that was a purely political decision, as was the closure of the schools in the spring.
According to Crevits, the stores can also open on Sundays, if sufficient work is done on crowd control, possibly in collaboration with the events sector. “If people are sensible and spread out, I don’t think it will be a problem to open on Sundays too,” she said.
Cases that suffer a 60 percent loss of turnover or more can still count on Flemish support until the end of this month. “I will go to the Flemish government to consider extending the support package to next year,” the minister promised.
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