Quebec Is Officially Changing Montreal's Curfew So You Can Stay Outside Longer

The new 9:30 p.m. curfew will come into effect on March 17.
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The Greater Montreal area's curfew will be pushed to 9:30 p.m., Quebec Premier François Legault confirmed in a press conference on March 16.

As of March 17, the evening curfew in Quebec red zones will match that of its orange zones across the province. The curfew will still end at 5:00 a.m.

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Legault made clear, however, that indoor gatherings are still forbidden.

The premier also confirmed the emergence of the B.1.1.7 COVID-19 virus variant in Quebec, saying that officials project it will become the dominant.

"Public health doctors [...] predict that from here to the end of the next month, the majority of cases in Quebec are going to be U.K. variant [cases]," he said. 

Arts theatres to reopen in red zones

The Quebec government has also added arts theatres and live show venues to its list of reopenings on March 26, along with gyms and interior sports complexes in Quebec red zones.

When cinemas and indoor pools reopened in mid-February, the premier said owners of show venues preferred to delay their reopening in order to take advantage of extended provincial financial aid.

Places of worship in red zones will also see their occupation limit increase to 25 worshippers at a time, he said. 

  • Lea Sabbah
  • Lea Sabbah was a Staff Writer for MTL Blog. Previously, Lea was a radio host on CJLO 1690 AM and her work has been published by Global News, the Toronto Star, Le Devoir and the National Observer. In 2019, she was part of the investigative team that uncovered lead in Montreal's drinking water — a story which won Quebec's Grand Prix Judith-Jasmin. She's a graduate of the journalism program at Concordia University.

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