Dutch become first to lock down over ‘lightning speed’ Omicron
THE Netherlands was last night plunged into a punishing new lockdown after it was claimed the Omicron variant of Covid is ‘spreading at lightning speed’ in Europe.
Non-essential shops, schools, bars, restaurants and other public venues will be closed until at least mid-January, while strict limits have been placed on the number of people who can meet.
Two guests over the age of 13 will be allowed per household, or four between December 24 and 26 and on New Year’s Eve.
‘I stand here tonight in a sombre mood,’ Prime Minister Mark Rutte said in a televised news conference last night. ‘To sum it up in one sentence, the Netherlands will go back into lockdown from tomorrow.’
The country’s first case of Omicron was detected on November 19 but it is expected to become the dominant strain there by New Year’s Day.
The news of Europe’s first lockdown since the emergence of the highly transmissible strain will raise fears of a repetition of the violent protests against Covid measures that erupted in The Hague and elsewhere in the Netherlands last month.
It came as thousands of British families endured travel misery this weekend after making a dash for France before strict border restrictions were imposed.
A huge traffic jam of cars and lorries formed on the M20 near the Port of Dover from Friday afternoon, with some families having to wait up to eight hours before they were able to board a ferry.
A long queue also snaked outside St Pancras station in London as an exodus of travellers attempted to catch Eurostar trains to Paris.
The chaos came as panicked families brought their travel plans forward ahead of a ban on all nonessential travel to France that came into force at 11pm on Friday.
Just hours after the measures were put in place, French Prime Minister Jean Castex warned that the Omicron strain is ‘spreading at lightning speed’.
Up to ten per cent of new Covid cases in France are suspected to be caused by the variant compared with at least 24 per cent in the UK.
In London, where it is the dominant strain, that number jumps to more than 51 per cent. Meanwhile in Ireland, new curfew rules to be imposed from tomorrow will mean pubs, restaurants, theatres and cinemas must close by 8pm every night, while sports venues will have to operate at 50 per cent capacity or have numbers capped.
The World Health Organisation has said Omicron has now been detected in 89 countries.
British travellers could also face further travel disruption in the New Year after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the EU must consider imposing PCR tests on travellers entering from outside the bloc.
Heathrow bosses have been lobbying the Government to set up pop-up booster shots around the airport to ensure that their staff, who work irregular hours, can get a jab around their shift patterns.
‘Raises fears of repetition of violent protests’