Restaurant in Ibiza

The certificate for restaurant interiors could become a requirement. | Marcelo Sastre

Majorca Daily Bulletin reporterPalma20/08/2021 07:10
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The Balearic government is giving itself a month to decide whether or not it will require the Digital Covid Certificate or a negative test for entrance to restaurants and certain other establishments. The government recognises that there are potential legal difficulties with introducing this measure, but the health minister, Patricia Gómez, said on Thursday that the certificate for some "high-risk activities" will offer added safety and noted that it is something that has been adopted in certain countries.

Gómez explained that the certificate was established in order to facilitate mobility between countries. For it to be used for other purposes would therefore require state regulation or the support of the courts. Members of the regional government are in favour as they believe it will give a boost to the vaccination programme and to reaching herd immunity; this is no longer 70% because of the Delta variant.

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The final decision will be based on various factors, including the vaccination rate. At present, there are still people who have not been offered the option to get vaccinated, but within a month this will have changed and will therefore be a key factor.

It is possible that there will be a coordinated strategy between Spanish regions, as many agree on the use of the certificate for gaining entrance, including restaurants.

The government is clear that a certificate requirement should not mean further harm to the restaurant sector. Meanwhile, no new restrictions are envisaged. It is possible that there will in fact be a relaxation of existing measures in view of the fact that the incidence rate has been declining for almost a month.