Terraces reopened, end of curfew, authorized festivals: the Prime Minister of Quebec, one of the Canadian provinces most affected by the coronavirus pandemic, announced on Tuesday, May 18 the upcoming lifting of containment measures thanks in particular to the success of the vaccination campaign.
"Today we see it, hope is there"
, rejoiced during a press briefing François Legault by unveiling a
"progressive and gradual"
deconfinement program
.
To discover
Deconfinement: what will change this Wednesday for the French
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The centrist leader announced that the government's target of 75% of Quebecers who received a first dose on June 24 would be reached on June 15.
“This summer of freedom is well deserved,”
he added.
The flagship measure of these eagerly awaited announcements, the lifting of the curfew introduced throughout the province since the beginning of January, will be effective from May 28.
Regularly denounced by demonstrators
"anti-health restrictions"
, this curfew was an unprecedented measure in Canada on a provincial scale since the Spanish flu epidemic a century ago.
"An almost normal life"
At the end of May, restaurant terraces will be able to open throughout the province, travel between regions will be authorized again, and outdoor stadiums and performance halls will be able to accommodate up to 2,500 people in sealed groups of 250. Mid-June, this It will be the turn of the bar terraces to reopen and two weeks later, outdoor festivals - one of the attractions of the province during the summer period - will be allowed, still with a limit of 2,500 people.
From June 25, wearing a mask or physical distancing will no longer be mandatory during indoor gatherings, provided that those concerned have received two doses of the anti-Covid vaccine.
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The Quebec government even provides that wearing a mask is no longer mandatory
"in most public places" at the
end of August if three quarters of Quebecers over 12 have received their two doses by then.
"We think that with that we will return to an almost normal life"
, estimated the head of public health of Quebec, Dr. Horacio Arruda.
"Then we will see at the end of August, September how it will behave, to plan the holiday season."
Quebec, which has about 8 million inhabitants, recorded some 364,000 cases of coronavirus and 11,000 deaths on Tuesday.
