Italy approved a new curfew on Monday, meaning people can stay out an hour longer in the evenings. This follows the lowest covid death figures in months.
On Monday (17th May), Italy approved a new curfew changing the curfew start time to 11pm. This is effective immediately from May 18th.
Further pushbacks in June
The original curfew (10pm-5am) had been in place since November and intended to prevent social gatherings and thereby reduce the risk of new covid infections.
This latest curfew (11pm-5am) could be pushed back to midnight from June 7th. Where ‘yellow zones’ occur this could be completely eliminated on June 21st, a government official confirmed.
Prime Minister Mario Draghi has been under pressure from the far-right in recent weeks as they pushed for the country to open up more quickly. They would like to see the curfew removed entirely.
New rules for restaurants, beaches open
From June 1st, in-restaurant dining will be allowed until 6pm under new rules. Last month, restaurants and bars could open and operate outside. Interregional travel was also relaxed in most of the country.
Beaches officially opened at the weekend. European Union visitors were allowed entry into the country on Sunday without the need to quarantine for five days.
Coloured zones
The different regions have been colour-coded according to health data. This in turn has set the level of restrictions. Red were high risk zones, followed by orange, then yellow. Most of Italy is now yellow.
On Monday, the minimal risk ‘white zones’ were named: Friuli-Venezia-Giulia, Molise and Sardinia, as of June 1, and Abruzzo, Veneto and Liguria a week later. Restrictions there will only apply to mask-wearing and social distancing.
The pace of vaccinations has picked up in recent weeks, providing Italy with promising health data. On Sunday, the Covid-19-related deaths figure of 93 was the lowest since October.
