PM intends to extend restrictions beyond January 9 and admits a fourth Covid vaccine dose

Prime minister António Costa said on Thursday that the Covid-19 restrictions planned for the festive season “surely” will be extended beyond January 9 and admitted the need for a fourth dose of the Covid-19 vaccine.

Speaking to RTP3 upon arrival at the European Council, the head of government predicted that, from January 9, border control measures will have to be maintained and even spoke of the possibility of being strengthened due to the new variant Ómicron.

“We should anticipate that from January 9, we will have to maintain border control measures. This new variant is spreading very intensely in Europe, and also in Portugal, so naturally, we cannot disarm,” said the prime minister.

As for internal measures, relating to attendance at restaurants and other establishments open to the public, shows or sporting events, António Costa does not foresee, at this point, any change in the rules.

However, the head of government revealed that the possibility of tightening the rules is not excluded: “With this pandemic, we must always be prepared to adopt any measure that may be necessary, and the sooner we adopt it the sooner we prevent the risk of escalation.”

In the ‘contact-containment’ week, from January 2 to 9, teleworking is mandatory, nightclubs will be closed, and schools will only open again on January 10.

António Costa also spoke of the possible need for a fourth dose of the Covid-19 vaccine: “We are currently in the process of purchasing a vaccine adapted to Omicron, which will be available after spring and we have already presented our request to acquire these vaccines, in order to have all the conditions in place to be able to adopt a fourth reinforcement dose if necessary.”

(Article last updated at 11h05 am)