Safety board chiefs meet as village festival organisers call for compensation

Photo: DutchNews.nl
Photo: DutchNews.nl

The government’s decision to ban festivals and all mass events without fixed seating until mid August at least has led to calls for compensation from village fete organisers in the Netherlands, the AD said on Monday.

The 25 safety board chiefs are meeting on Monday to discuss the implications of the government’s decision on Friday to bring back some of the coronavirus restrictions after just two weeks, following a surge in positive tests.

And now a number of mayors have asked the regional safety boards to lobby central government for financial support, the AD said.

‘We understand why the government has to intervene, but we are also aware of the enormous impact this will have on many in our region,’ Zwolle’s mayor Peter Snijders said.

‘We will do our best to get national attention for the calls for compensation for local cafes and bars and event organisers,’ he said. ‘These events are often organized by volunteers who are now being faced with the financial consequences.’

The mayors will also discuss a preliminary report into the experiences of cafes, bars and nightclubs with the ‘test for entry’ system and the CoronaCheck app after reports of fraud and poor controls.

Super spreader

Virologists say that the sharp rise in cases – topping 10,000 on Saturday – is due to a number of super spreader events since restrictions were lifted and may be linked to ‘test for entry’ failings.

Nevertheless, Louis Kroes from Leiden’s LUMC teaching hospital, told the Telegraaf that the rise in cases has had very little impact on the death rate and the healthcare system so far.

‘Yes,, the situation can become very serious if not brought under control, but so far we are seeing few deaths and it is quiet in the hospitals,’ he said. ‘The situation does not look very serious if we are only looking at infections.’

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