NEWS
ON-TRADE RETURNS GRADUALLY AS JAPAN LIFTS STATE OF EMERGENCY TODAY
By Susan Lewis
30-9-2021
Credit: David Mathews
Japan’s coronavirus state of emergency ends today, bars and restaurants can resume serving alcohol, but major cities like Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto will stick to the ban for now.
Out-going Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said virus restrictions will be eased gradually “in order to resume daily lives despite the presence of the virus."
“Our fight against the coronavirus is now entering a new phase. Finally, we can see social and economic activities starting to normalize,” Suga added.
With the lifting, Japan will be free of emergency requirements for the first time in more than six months.
The government said bars and restaurants can start serving alcohol from today, but they are supposed to close by 9pm.
However, prefectural governors will be able to continue restrictions on alcohol sales as they attempt to balance between encouraging social and economic activities and triggering a fresh outbreak.
Governors in Tokyo, Osaka, Hyogo and Kyoto have said they plan to keep emergency requests in place while closely monitoring the virus situation.
Businesses that continue to limit their opening hours will receive financial support from the government.
Japan’s coronavirus state of emergency, declared in April, was repeatedly extended. The emergency rule covered 27 of Japan’s 47 prefectures affecting about 70 percent of the country’s population.
The rules requested restaurants and bars to stop serving alcohol and close at 8pm.
(the writer can be contacted at: info@thewinechronicle.com)
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