Earlier today the president of the Canary Islands, Ángel Víctor Torres, declared that he does not rule out that the Governing Council raising Tenerife to alert Level 3 restrictions due to the worrying increase in new positives for Covid-19 that are being registered on the island.
In this regard, the vice president of the Tenerife Leisure and Restaurant Association, Carlos Quintero, assured that “people are concerned about the increase in infections, since another closure of the interior of the premises would be dramatic for business owners who have been able to get some breathing space since the opening was allowed a few weeks ago”.
According to COPE this morning, Quintero has asked the health authorities to influence compliance with the measures against the coronavirus in public spaces, at botellons, or at private parties, and if needed by carrying out spot checks on the bars and restaurants to ensure that they are following the rules too.
It is generally accepted that restaurants particularly are not too blame for non-compliance, as they have hand gels, correct spacing, table service, no music, no live entertainment, and are respecting capacity limitations and group sizes, as well as registering everyone that eats inside.
However, the bars are under the microscope for the opposite reason. Many do not have the correct spacing, do have people moving around, do have music, do have live entertainment, some are even advertising karaoke, and sometimes it can be more difficult for staff to control.
Quintero said: "We do not want the blame for what is happening, since we are the most interested in respecting the rules to continue developing our activity normally,” adding that “an increase in restrictions in the hospitality industry could mean the definitive closure of thousands of businesses. There are many entrepreneurs who have already spent the ICO credits or their life savings and do not have an economic cushion left”.
