Cabinet stands firm on 300-patron limit for fetes, and restricts private parties to 25 persons, cognizant of Omicron threat

Fete promoters will be disappointed with the decision of the Cabinet to maintain a limit of 300 patrons at their events.

The promoters had indicated to the Executive, last week, that hosting an event for that number of patrons would not be profitable for them.

However, the Government has countered, saying there is a threat to its management of the COVID-19 pandemic, since research on the Omicron variant is not yet complete.

Following intense discussions by the Cabinet on Wednesday, and after careful consideration of a proposal made by a group of promoters last week, the Executive decided to maintain the upper limit of 300 persons at approved fetes. 

As a further restriction, only one event will be permitted on any given day, and it is subject to all other safety protocols, including the rapid-test pre-screening.

Additionally, private parties will be limited to 25 persons – except for those held in bio-secure spaces, such as hotel functions for visitors.

Meanwhile, the Cabinet cautions that it “reserves the right to review, every seven days, the efficacy of the restrictions … in order to determine whether [they] are achieving the desired outcome – that is preventing the spread of the COVID-19 virus.”