A man wearing a face mask walks on the street during the COVID-19 pandemic in Stockholm, Sweden’s capital, on November 3, 2020. (Photo by Wei Xuechao / Xinhua)
Sweden has introduced new rules that allow a maximum of eight people at private events held in commercially employed places. Indoor facilities such as gyms, bathhouses and shops are also subject to strict capacity restrictions.
STOCKHOLM, January 10 (Xinhua) – When Sweden’s emergency pandemic law enters into force on Sunday, gyms, malls, shops, public swimming pools and other facilities may be fined or closed if they do not limit the number of visitors.
Sweden’s 21 regions, which have the task of applying the law, are facing major organizational challenges, where the Stockholm region, for example, is creating a special unit consisting of approximately 30 people who are only concerned with monitoring compliance with the new law.
Regional enforcement sources told Swedish TV that they will also rely on tips from municipalities and other authorities to identify where the biggest threats of infection are and target potential problems.
“We can not control everyone. It is impossible,” says Ulrika Samuelsson from Vastra Gotaland Regional Board in western Sweden. She added that her organization has a good collaboration with local municipalities and their health inspectors.
“We will base our work on risk assessments and on reliable tips,” added Samuelsson.
According to her, gyms and other facilities will receive information and advice before they are checked early from the end of next week. Those who do not follow can be fined or even closed under the new law, which is in place on Sunday 30 September.
A man with a face mask is waiting for a bus during the COVID-19 pandemic in Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, on November 3, 2020. (Photo by Wei Xuechao / Xinhua)
On Friday, Sweden introduced new rules that allow a maximum of eight people at private events held in commercially employed places. Indoor facilities such as gyms, bathhouses and shops are also subject to strict capacity restrictions.
Minister of Social Affairs and Health Lena Hallengren explained that the new rules require that everyone who conducts such an activity calculates the maximum number of visitors or customers who can stay at the site at the same time, based on one person per 10 square meters.
The restrictions were introduced hours after the Riksdag passed a new temporary law on Friday, which gave the government the power to introduce more restrictive measures to combat the coronavirus pandemic.
According to the latest statistics from the Swedish Public Health Agency, a total of 489,471 COVID-19 cases and 9,433 deaths were confirmed in the country before Friday.
As the world struggles to control the pandemic, vaccination is underway in some countries with the already authorized coronavirus vaccines.
At the same time, 235 candidate vaccines are still being developed worldwide – 63 of them in clinical trials – in countries such as Germany, China, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States, according to information published by the World Health Organization on 6 January.
A man wearing a face mask is waiting for a train at the central station during the COVID-19 pandemic in Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, on November 3, 2020. (Photo by Wei Xuechao / Xinhua) โ