Hong Kong third wave: call for fresh subsidies amid tightened Covid-19 measures, as businesses slam nighttime dine-in ban: ‘does virus not exist in afternoon?’
- Strongest backlash comes from bar industry, with operators expecting shutdown to extend beyond current limit, and many lamenting huge losses faced
- Restaurants not allowed dine-in services from 6pm to 5am for a week, with patrons per table capped at four
Hong Kong’s struggling businesses on Tuesday called for fresh subsidies after the government tightened social-distancing restrictions, with some sectors slamming the city’s toughest measures to date for the coronavirus pandemic.
Industry representatives expected the nighttime ban on dine-in services and a shutdown of bars and 12 other type of premises from Wednesday to be extended beyond a week, leading to multibillion-dollar losses.
One of the strongest backlash came from the bar industry, which questioned the scientific grounds for the latest strategy.
“The virus doesn’t exist in the afternoon? Do they really work like bats and only come out at night?” Cat Hou Chui-shan, chairwoman of the Bartenders and Mixologists Union of Hong Kong, said in a press conference.
“I hope the Carrie Lam administration can roll out the third round of anti-epidemic funds.”
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Hong Kong battles third wave of coronavirus infections
On Monday night, Lam, Hong Kong’s leader, announced a drastic tightening of social-distancing rules, including a ban on dine-in services at restaurants from 6pm to 5am for seven days. The number of patrons allowed at a table in restaurants would be capped at four.