Denmark and Norway have both announced fresh plans to further ease COVID-19 restrictions.
Shops in Denmark will be allowed to reopen from Monday (May 11), followed a week later by the return of bars, restaurants and secondary schools. Professional sports teams will return to training immediately.
Denmark’s lockdown, introduced on March 11, was early compared to other European countries. At the time of writing, the country has registered around 10,000 infections and more than 500 COVID-19 fatalities.
The announcement of phase two of restrictions being eased came after a long debate in the Danish parliament and eventual agreement. But there is, as yet, no decision on when cinemas, universities and gymnasiums can reopen.
Meanwhile, the Danish capital Copenhagen has confirmed its commitment to hosting its share of the Euro 2020 football matches, now postponed until 2021. It will host four games despite them now coinciding with the opening stages of Le Tour De France.
Further north, in Norway, professional sports are also being allowed to restart. Football leagues will resume fixtures from June 16.
Primary schools have already reopened but middle and high schools will return from Monday (May 11).
Bars will reopen from June 1.
There’s also a relaxation in Norway of the number of people who can gather at any one time; private assemblies of people are now permitted to reach a maximum of 20.
In public, gatherings are now allowed up to a maximum of 50. The decision has arrived in good time: Norway celebrates its national day on May 17.
The country, which locked down early too, on March 12, has seen around 8,000 infections and more than 200 COVID-19 deaths.
Denmark and Norway have published a timetable for the lifting of Coronavirus restrictions, but borders will remain closed for an undefined period.
Only this week, Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Fredriksen stressed that the reopening of borders to foreign citizens is not even in the top of the priority list regarding the lifting of Coronavirus containment measures, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
“A border opening can mean that many people come to Denmark. It may help to move the infection in a negative direction. Of course, the borders must also be seen in the context of what is happening in the countries around us,” PM Fredriksen said, adding that though a date has not been set, the borders will not reopen until “at least” June 1.
According to the Economic Expert Group, any border opening should be coordinated with the closest neighbouring countries.
As per Norway, the Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg didn’t give a specific date but insisted that any border reopening will depend heavily on the situation in other countries.
Solberg prolonged the travel advice for Norwegians that no foreign travel should take place unless necessary, but the mandatory quarantine period for those coming from abroad has been reduced from 14 to 10 days.
However, even if borders were to open in June, there would be fewer flights than normal.
Due to the Coronavirus outbreak, this week Norway announced that it would extend internal border controls.
Sweden, controversially, has been following a different trajectory during the pandemic with most restaurants and cafes remaining open.
The strategy, which has strong support amongst the Swedish public, was similar to one initially followed in the UK.
Sweden’s mortality rate is higher than its Scandinavian neighbours. It has had around 25,000 infections and more than 3,000 COVID-19 deaths.