Lockdown relaxation unlikely on Tuesday, Minister says

Minister Tamara van Ark for Medical Care is not optimistic about the chance that the government will relax coronanvirus measures on Tuesday. The pressure on healthcare is still very high, she said before the Council of Ministers meeting on Friday, NOS reports.

The current lockdown restrictions are in place until at least February 9. A week before that date, on Tuesday, Prime Minister Mark Rutte and Health Minister Hugo de Jonge will hold a press conference to update the Dutch population on the state of affairs.

There was some hope that they would announce that schools can reopen or curfew will be scrapped. But according to Van Ark, Netherlands residents shouldn't hold their breath.

While coronavirus infection numbers are falling, they aren't falling enough, she said. The same goes for hospitalization figures. "And then there is the British variant, which is much more contagious," Van Ark said.

She's had many conversations with people in healthcare and they all indicate that they're still under a lot of pressure. "Regular care is not in order yet either," she said.

No decisions have been made about possible relaxations yet, Van Ark said. The involved Ministers will meet with the most important Covid-19 advisers at the Catshuis, Rutte's residence in The Hague, on Sunday.