ARCHIVED - De-escalation of Covid restrictions in Valencia region will begin next week

The regional government will start to ease Covid restrictions in the three provinces, including Alicante, from Tuesday, September 7

President of the Valencia region, Ximo Puig, has announced that de-escalation of Covid restrictions will begin on Tuesday, and will last a month, with a view to celebrating the Community of Valencia Day on October 9 within a "situation of new normality".

The Generalitat will decide this week the new relaxed restrictions expected to come into force across the provinces of Alicante, Valencia and Castellon from September 7, once the Fallas 2021 have finished (September 5) and once the health department is confident the fifth wave of Covid has been stablised. 

It is also expected the nighttime curfew in 68 municipalities, in place until September 6 along with restrictions on gatherings and hospitality opening hours, will be lifted.

The regional government then plans to start a progressive de-escalation, in which some of the measures in force throughout the summer will "become more flexible". Three weeks ago, Puig said the reopening of nightlife would be considered, with a decision dependent on Covid health data.

"At the moment the epidemiological services of the Generalitat Valenciana are studying the criteria that are used for the restrictions", says the president, who assures that the autonomous Executive will act according to "what the experts tell us". 

"The pandemic has not gone away, although the figures are improving due to the positive impact of vaccination, there are still people who get sick and die", he warns.

Puig also admits that "vaccines have their own limitations" due to new variants but stresses that on a positive note, 76 per cent of the Valencian population over 12 years of age is now fully immunised with 87.7 per cent having received a first dose.

The region currently has a 14-day cumulative incidence rate of 183.67 per 100,000 people (below the national average of 233.75) and the final phase of its Covid vaccination campaign began this week.

With this socio-health outlook, the president says the main objective is that by October 9, the Valencia "will be an immunised autonomous community".

October 9, Día de la Comunidad Valenciana, commemorates the date in 1238 when King James I officially entered the capital city, freeing it from Moorish rule.

IMAGE: GVA