The Basque Minister of Economic Development and Infrastructures, Arantxa Tapia, has announced that the LABI Committee will adopt new measures to contain the coronavirus next Tuesday and that they will be aimed at the restriction of capacity, grouping of people, hospitality hours and adaptation of public transport at night.

In a press conference, Tapia explained the measures planned from Monday when Euskadi will return to “an extraordinary setting”, when the Department of Health will declare the Sanitary Emergency.

This will allow, immediately, Security Minister Estefanía Beltrán de Heredia, activate the LABI-Basque Civil Protection Plan, whose direction and coordination will be assumed by the Lehendakari himself. The first meeting of the committee that makes up the LABI will take place Tuesday, August 18, convened and chaired by the Lehendakari and with an inter-institutional presence.

“Strictly sanitary” reasons

Tapia has affirmed that the State of Sanitary Emergency responds to “strictly sanitary” reasons and establishes a legal framework in which it is allowed to assume and implement concrete measures, according to the needs of each moment.

The minister explained that these are measures that will be applied in two ways, in a generalized way for the whole of Euskadi, and, on the other hand, with “specific, extraordinary” measures that will be applied exclusively in municipalities, areas or areas that are especially affected. “We will work on the combination of more restrictive measures in a generalized way and additional measures for ‘surgical procedures’ where the need is greatest, “he added.

Tapia has announced that the LABI Committee next Tuesday will determine specific measures of a restrictive nature, and although they will be detailed that day, he has specified that they will be in line with the restriction of capacity, restriction in grouping of people, hotel hours, and adaptation of the public transport at night. In addition, it has indicated that the measures agreed yesterday in the inter-territorial council will be incorporated.

In addition, he has pointed out that, in line with what has been done in some especially affected municipalities, additional restrictive measures will be strengthened in those municipalities that, “even if only occasionally, some outbreak or special condition is detected.”

Single command

In this sense, it has specified that the sole command of the lehendakari and the LABI committee will be the bosom in which said coordination is maintained and has indicated that the decisions that are adopted will be promptly communicated to the whole of society, as well as the groups most directly affected.

Tapia has indicated that you are facing a “changing scenario” and measures will be adopted according to the situation, so that they can be lifted if the positives are controlled. “This step back is not pleasant, but it is essential, urgent and necessary, added the counselor who, has specified that the health emergency” is not a state of alarm, it is not confinement like that of March or April and does not entail all the restrictive measures that were applied in March “.