the Balearic government has finally reduced the bar and restaurant restrictions

the Balearic government has finally reduced the bar and restaurant restrictions. | I.M. / A.B.

Jason MoorePalma10/05/2021 10:16
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There was a buzz around the bars and restaurants on the Paseo Mallorca this weekend. There is perception that the end is in sight; the Balearic government has finally reduced the bar and restaurant restrictions and from tonight you will be able to have dinner on a terrace. What is more in two weeks bars and restaurants will be allowed to open their interiors with reduced capacity. Hopefully, the nightmare is coming to an end.

Some might say that the Balearic government is easing the restrictions too early because a sizeable proportion of the population have still not been vaccinated. The number of cases of the coronavirus continues to rise but at a slower level. To be honest the Balearic government had little option but to ease the restrictions with the Spanish government ending the State of Alarm from tonight. The Balearic government were treading a legal tightrope; in some ways their hands had been tied by their superiors in Madrid.

They managed to keep the curfew, which remains at 11p.m. and social distancing and the masks. But really they had little option but to ease the restrictions on bars and restaurants. The bars and restaurants along the Paseo Mallorca were packed on Friday and yesterday; there was even live music. There was a sense that the coronavirus had been beaten.

But the Balearic government has warned that if there is any increase in cases they will reintroduce the restrictions. A battle has been won but the war is still ongoing. For the hard-pressed bar and restaurant industry the easing of the restrictions is certainly a major relief.