Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley’s address to the nation – June 26, 2020. (PMO) — PLAY VIDEO HERE …….
Prime Minister Mia Mottley spoke to a number of issues including providing a COVID-19 update.
Minister of Health and Wellness, Lieutenant Colonel, Jeffrey Bostic; Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Dale Marshall; and Minister of Tourism and International Transport, Kerrie Symmonds also addressed the briefing.
No More Curfews Effective Wednesday, July 1
by Sheena Forde-Craigg | Jun 26, 2020 | Corona Virus, Top Stories
Effective Wednesday, July 1, there will be no curfews in Barbados.
Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley made this announcement today in her address to the nation.
She also revealed that the physical distancing protocol would now be one metre, “that is just about three feet or in other words, outside of the stretch of your arms and hands”, Prime Minister Mottley stated.
Elaborating on the additional ease of restrictions and protocols that would apply to Emergency Management (COVID-19) Directive Number 8, Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Dale Marshall, outlined a few of those amendments that would take effect from Monday, June 29.
They are:
- All day care centres will be allowed to re-open to full functionality.
- Spectator sports will resume with physical distancing and sanitizing protocols.
- All public and entertainment events can now have a maximum of 500 persons, who will have to adhere to physical distancing protocols and wearing of masks.
- The limit of time on church services has been removed, however the other protocols will remain in place.
- Baptisms can resume with the wearing of gloves by clergy.
- The status quo will remain until further notice for visitation to district hospitals and senior citizens’ homes, that is one person at a time.
The Attorney General noted that from Wednesday, July 15, in relation to public and entertainment events, that once the COVID-19 Monitoring Unit certifies that they are satisfied with the arrangements that are put in place, it would be possible to host events in excess of 500 people.
Mr. Marshall also highlighted that going forward, the COVID-19 Monitoring Unit, which will have its own dedicated email address and phone number, “is going to be responsible for many of the things that I would have had to take charge of as Attorney General”.
In relation to Parliament extending the state of emergency until the end of August, the Attorney General explained the rationale for the extension by stating: “It allows us to maintain our restrictions in relation to the physical protocols, in relation to the sanitizing. It is the basis on which the COVID-19 Monitoring Unit will work; they will work within the context of a state of emergency caused by the pandemic.
“And even though we have no cases at this point in time when we feel that we are COVID free from a point of view of governance, it is still going to be important for us to ensure that those protocols of physical distancing and things of that sort will remain in place.”
