This weeks meeting at Infarmed left no doubt: the next phase of the deconfinement plan will be fulfilled. Portugal will enter the fourth phase next Monday, May 3rd, the date that had been set by the Prime Minister way back on March 11th.
The State of Emergency will no longer apply, but with the presidential promise that it can return if “necessary”. It is not yet that full normality will be resumed: regular Infarmed meetings with experts continue, however, this last phase of deconfinement represents the closest approximation so far to how pre-pandemic life was.
Following are the steps that will be taken next Monday, still subject to changes by the local Council of Ministers and, in some municipalities, delayed according to the local incidence rates.
♦ RESTAURANTS AND CAFÉS WITHOUT TIME LIMITS
Restaurants, cafes, patisseries and other similar establishments no longer operate with time limits. In addition, restrictions on service are also extended: inside establishments it is now possible to have groups of six people per table, and on the outdoor terraces that number rises to ten.
♦ TOTALLY UNCONFINED SPORTS ACTIVITY
The third phase of the plan gave the green light to sports considered to be of medium risk, but this fourth phase foresees that all sports can return to normal.
♦ GROUP CLASSES GYMS
In gyms, it is now possible to practice physical activity in a group. In addition, outdoor physical activity is now allowed without any restrictions, when until now it was limited to groups of up to six people.
♦ EXTERNAL EVENTS WITHOUT RESTRICTIONS
Large outdoor events will be able to go ahead without having their capacity reduced, as has been the case up until now. However, this rule of reduced capacity still holds true for events held indoors.
♦ 50% WEDDINGS AND BAPTISMS
The authorised capacity for private events, such as weddings and baptisms, will also increase: the venues will now be able to have 50% of the capacity, instead of the current 25%.
Original article available in Portuguese at http://postal.pt/
