Entrepreneurs shocked by OMT advice for total lockdown
According to chairman Hans Biesheuvel of Ondernemend Nederland, the shock is concerning to entrepreneurs now that the OMT is advising a complete lockdown.
“At the start of the pandemic, companies were still in relatively good shape, but now they have about 20 billion euros in tax debt, private debts and there are few reserves,” Biesheuvel told ANP news agency. “I’m afraid their resistance has decreased a lot.”
On Friday evening it was announced that the Outbreak Management Team (OMT) is advising the cabinet to institute a total lockdown in the coming weeks due to the Omikron variant. If the outgoing cabinet, which is holding emergency consultations this Saturday, adopts the advice, all sectors will have to close. Only essential shops such as supermarkets, pharmacies and drugstores should remain open.
The retail trade foresees a huge blow to the sector and society as a whole, a spokesperson for industry association INretail told ANP: “If you close everything a week before Christmas, in which people still want to arrange all kinds of things, I wonder whether this is an intelligent approach. is.”
A person involved in the OMT advice indicated NRC know that “there is no more room for finesse” in the fight against viruses. But the shopkeepers’ association expects chaos if people quickly start shopping before the lockdown starts and also thinks that there is hardly any support among the Dutch for a full lockdown.
In recent weeks, an evening lockdown has been in effect, but all shops and other sectors were allowed to open until 5 p.m. during the day.
Welcome to this new corona blog
The editors of NRC keeps track of the latest developments regarding the corona crisis in the Netherlands and abroad. This Saturday the outgoing cabinet will meet in digital form about the OMT advice on the Omikron variant. Decisions on new measures are expected; sources reported Friday night NRC that the OMT has advised to institute a total lockdown against the spread of this variant. Earlier in the day, caretaker minister Hugo de Jonge already announced that he was concerned about Omikron.
Read it here blog from Friday 17 December back
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