Deputy Prime Minister Kajsa Ollongren understands the questions that exist about the cabinet’s rapidly changing mouth masks directive. For months the cabinet insisted that mouth-nose masks would provide a false sense of security, but after pressure from the House of Representatives, an urgent advice was issued to wear a face mask in public indoor spaces.
“I understand why people ask: why now?”, Ollongren said after the cabinet meeting. The fact that the cabinet is now presenting the advice has to do with the alarming increase in the number of corona infections and hospital admissions, according to the minister. “Every little bit helps now.”
On Monday, after consultation with the safety regions, the cabinet came up with the advice to come up with mouth masks advice for corona fires in Amsterdam, Rotterdam and The Hague.
Under pressure from the House of Representatives, which wondered whether the new package of measures is sufficient to break the second wave, Prime Minister Mark Rutte changed tack on Wednesday and announced an urgent recommendation for a national face masks policy.
Uncertainty about guidelines in schools
What followed was a lack of clarity. It would not be a duty, and whether a mouth mask would also apply to the schools had to be worked out. In the meantime, the Ministry of Education issued an urgent advice on Thursday to wear a mouth mask in education, after which an exception followed Friday for secondary vocational education, higher vocational education and university education.
Minister Ollongren did not want to comment on the question of how the cabinet looks back on the communication regarding the mouth masks directive. According to her, the different advice for secondary vocational education and higher education is the result of consultation with the sector. “MBO and higher education say that they have a lot of online education and that the 1.5 meters can be maintained.”
The definitive guidelines will be announced on Friday evening at 6 p.m. via the website of the National Government.
Ollongren emphasized that the mouth masks advice should be seen as a supplement to the already applicable corona rules and not as a replacement for the distance rule.
– .
