Published Jun 4, 2020 at 2:02 pm (Updated Jun 4, 2020 at 8:27 pm)
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Press conference
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David Burt, the Premier (File photograph by Blaire Simmons)
The island is to move towards Phase 3 of Covid-19 restrictions on June 11.
David Burt, the Premier, said the final details for the next stage of reopening would be announced on Monday.
“I look forward to pressing ahead to Phase 4 as quickly and safely as possible,” Mr Burt said.
The Premier said he did not believe that curfews would be lifted with Phase 3, and that curfews might continue past the end of the island’s state of emergency.
He said that tomorrow in the House of Assembly, MPs would debate cutting ministerial salaries by 15 per cent for one calendar year, and the salaries of members and officers of the legislature by 12½ per cent.
Mr Burt said there would have to be careful balancing of reopening the island to visitors.
He told the press conference: “Bermuda did not experience an epidemic; Bermuda did not experience community transmission.”
But he added: “We can’t keep the country shut down for ever, and we must find ways so we can balance safety with economic activity and bringing dollars into our shores.”
Bermuda marked another day without new cases of Covid-19, after 39 test results today were all negative for coronavirus.
Kim Wilson, the health minister, said real-time reproduction number seven-day average for the virus had fallen to 0.39, “putting us in a great place”.
The island has had 141 known cases of the virus, and so far 43 per cent of these cases are classified as asymptomatic.
Ms Wilson said the island’s testing regime was being “reformulated”, which was the reason why recent numbers of tests have appeared low compared with earlier results.
She added: “Starting next week, we are going to do far more aggressive testing, and we’re going to combine our testing resources.”
Ms Wilson said “pop-up” testing services would be launched next week, including locations such as supermarkets.
At present, the island has 19 active cases of the virus, 12 of them under public health monitoring and seven in hospital.
There remain no patients in critical care, Ms Wilson said.
Ms Wilson reminded the public to use masks for protection, with “peaceful demonstrations” expected over the weekend.
Grocery stores remain restricted to assigned days based on surnames.
Mr Burt credited widespread use of masks for the low transmission numbers of the virus on the island.
He also said there would be legal amendments taken by the Government to make sure that demonstrations planned for Sunday could go ahead legally.
Diallo Rabain, the education minister, gave an update on schools.
All schools were scheduled to open at Phase 3, but Mr Rabain said public schools would not be realistically able to open before the summer break.
Accordingly, the academic year for public schools is set to end on June 19.
School staff will remain working until June 30 to complete end-of-year activities.
The details came at a 5.50pm press conference at the Cafetorium at the Berkeley Institute.
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