The record high numbers in COVID-19 cases continued for Greece as health authorities recorded 28,828 new infections in the past 24 hours to 3pm Wednesday.
The previous day figures had climbed to 21,657 on Tuesday from 9,284 on Monday and 72 deaths with COVID-19 were also reported, according to the National Organization for Public Health (EODY) .
As a result the government made a snap decision to bring forward the restrictions that has been scheduled for 3 January.
Health Minister Thanos Plevris announced high protection masks on public transport, at supermarkets and in all areas where crowds are gathered as well as at food venues; urging for people to use double masks where high protection masks are not available. The Minister also stressed that the state of the national health system, is still under tremendous pressure from the severity of the delta variant enlisting private hospitals to offer beds and staff where necessary.
Meanwhile, there is a limit of six people at tables in eateries and a midnight curfew for restaurants and entertainment venues; as well as limitations at sports venues and changes in the workplace. In addition, employees that are able to work from home in both the public and private sectors will be required to.
“(Prime Minister Kyriakos) Mitsotakis knew what was coming. He pretended to take measures without any substance and with only the criterion of his political cost,” a Syriza spokeperson said.
Similarly to the main opposition party, the Movement for Change (KINAL) party issued a statement saying that “the measures should have been introduced when the first samples of the super-spreading omicron variant appeared in other European countries, whose governments exhibited greater decisiveness and effectiveness than the Greek one”.
General secretary of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE), Dimitris Koutsoumbas, also accused the Prime Minister on thinking “backward” and not making timely decisions to support the public health system.
