Portugal tightens COVID-19 measures

Amid a spike in cases, the Portuguese government has imposed new rules and restrictions on public life in the country

As coronavirus cases in Portugal continue to mount, the country’s Prime Minister Antonio Costa has announced a series of new measures meant to prevent the further spread of the disease. Despite the fact that the increase in cases has been somewhat slowed down in recent days, the progress made is far from sufficient according to the PM, which requires further action to quickly be taken.

A robust response

In order to limit the number of new infections in the coming weeks, the government has adopted several new motions that are meant to protect the lives of citizens while simultaneously causing as little harm as possible to the economy. They are as follows:

• Mandatory use of masks at enclosed workspaces, on top of the already existing mask-wearing mandates
• Limitations of movement around Portugal’s two national holidays – 1 and 8 December. Between 11 PM on 27 November and 5 AM on 2 December and between 11 PM on 4 December and at 5 PM on 9 December, a prohibition of movement between municipalities will come into effect, with possible exceptions for work-related or emergency travel.
• A suspension of teaching and a call for the suspension of work around the two aforementioned dates in order to reduce traffic

Reflecting on the difficulties that these new measures will create for businesses, PM António Costa said that the Government is aware that “these measures have a significant impact on sectors such as commerce, restaurants and cultural activities, so this week, the Minister of Economy will present new support measures across the different sectors of activity”.

The Prime Minister also referred to measures that are already underway, namely those that were adopted within the scope of Apoiar.pt, in the amount of 1550 million euros, which could further be bolstered by additional actions currently under consideration by his government.