Final COVID Restrictions To End On 26 August

Most of Jersey's final COVID restrictions are due to be lifted on Thursday 26 August.

That means:

• Nightclubs can reopen with dancing allowed
• Stand-up drinking in pubs and bars can return
• Large events can take place subject to risk assessments
• Working from home advice will end
• Masks won't need to be worn inside public spaces anymore - except for in the ports and on public transport.

Businesses that sell food and drink will still have to, by law, collect customers' details for track and reasons.

The latest stats show that 80% of adults in Jersey have had both doses of a coronavirus vaccine.

"I am pleased we can now open up our Island community to the next stage of reconnection, which will provide the welcome return of Islanders’ freedoms. It has been a difficult year, and I hope this will ease the situation for those businesses which have been most severely affected by the prolonged restrictions.

"We have been pursuing a robust suppression strategy, using measures including mask-wearing, working from home, and physical distancing to bring down infection rates. But this came at a cost to our liberty and our way of life. 

"Now we are moving into a mitigation phase, which marks a distinct change in the way our Island will deal with the pandemic. 80% of the adult population is fully vaccinated, and we can return to Islanders the freedoms they have missed.

"We will maintain a robust test, trace and isolate system to help control the spread of infection. For now, food and drink premises will still be required, by law, to collect customers’ contact details and we will be speaking to businesses about how we can work with sensible guidelines in bars, nightclubs and large events. 

"We will continue to strongly encourage Islanders to be vaccinated, and we are currently working on measures to minimise disruption in schools when they return in September." - Senator Lyndon Farnham, Deputy Chief Minister.

The final restrictions were originally due to be lifted on 14 June, but the move to Stage 7 of the roadmap to recovery has been postponed several times because of rising case rates.

They are now on the decline. As of Tuesday 10 August, 499 people were known to have coronavirus in Jersey.

Business support measures have been extended because of the pressures faced by many businesses over the usually busy summer months.