Another Quebec Curfew? Here's What Legault May Be Planning to Announce Tonight
It feels like 6 p.m. cannot come soon enough...
This is an evolving story. Read MTL Blog's coverage of the latest COVID-19 restrictions here.
Grab your popcorn. With the Omicron variant running rampant in our province and the record-breaking climbs in daily COVID-19 cases, Premier François Legault said the government is faced with "difficult choices," and we'll be finding out what that means at 6 p.m. tonight.
Although nothing is certain yet, various news outlets have begun to speculate what additional restrictions could be announced, and social media has been rife with speculation about a reinstated Quebec curfew.
Various outlets reported a curfew being discussed
La Presse reported that during government discussions on Tuesday, the idea of lowering the limit of 10 people allowed for private gatherings down to six came up. "The same limit would be applied in restaurants regarding the number of people per table," La Presse wrote.
According to TVA Nouvelles' sources, gatherings of 10 people, or a maximum of three different bubbles, will likely still be allowed, "but only until December 26."
Both TVA and La Presse claimed that the imposition of a curfew was in discussion, but that it appeared to be put on hold — at least for now.
Meanwhile, Le Devoir reported that a government source informed them that "tighter measures that could include the return of a curfew and lockdown are being considered."
In a press conference on December 17, Premier François Legault said that reintroducing a curfew in Quebec was off the table for the time being, but that was before Quebec saw four record-breaking daily COVID-19 case counts in as many days, from December 18 to 21.
The government's press conference will be live on Legault's Facebook page tonight at 6 p.m.
New restrictions were put in place on Monday
Just two days ago, the Government of Quebec announced a long list of new restrictions in the hopes of trying to stop the spread of COVID-19 in our province.
Starting Monday at 5 p.m., all bars, taverns, casinos, cinemas, gyms, spas and concert halls in Quebec were ordered to close. "High-risk activities" like karaoke, dancing and office parties were banned and the work from home order was reinstated.
Restaurants and stores are only now only permitted to have 50% capacity, which was announced during a press conference on Thursday, December 16.
Places of worship now require a vaccine passport to enter, and their capacity has been reduced to half, up to a maximum of 250 people.
All sports tournaments and competitions are currently suspended.
This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.
