Netherlands announces partial lockdown

BRUSSELS, Oct 13 (KUNA) -- Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte Tuesday announced a partial lockdown in the Netherlands to stop the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.
He told a press conference at the Hague this evening that cafes and restaurants in the Netherlands are to be shut for at least four weeks from Wednesday.
"The number of social contacts and movements we make has to be cut drastically," he said.
"It is the only way. We have to be tough on ourselves and on our behavior," he stressed.
There were nearly 44,000 new cases of coronavirus in the country the past week.
Hotels can remain open but their restaurants are restricted to hotel guests.
Shops will no longer be able to open in the evening, apart from food shops.
Other new measures include limiting group numbers to four, inside and outside.
Team sports for adults in groups of more than four are also being halted and junior sports competitions are being paused to stop people having to travel to matches.
The situation in secondary schools will not change, but face masks are now urgently recommended at colleges and universities when students are moving around, said the Dutch PM.
Ministers are also talking to employers and unions to make sure that more people work at home.
Too many people are still travelling to work, Rutte said.
Asked why the Dutch appear to be doing much worse than other countries, health minister Hugo de Jonge told the joint press conference that some people take the attitude that advice is something that does not have to be followed. (end) nk.mb