The Governing Council of the Canary Islands has approved this Thursday the decree law that brings together the control measures against the spread of Covid-19 and that includes, among other things, the possibility of requesting diagnostic tests, by labor sectors, for workers who have not been vaccinated.
This was pointed out at a press conference by the President of the Executive, Ángel Víctor Torres, who pointed out that it will be necessary to certify complete vaccination or an "alternative test" for the exercise of work activity in order to "provide greater security" now that 70% of the Canarian population is vaccinated.
Torres pointed out that many parts of the decree are inspired by what was approved in the Basque Country or Aragon and has advanced that the text will be published on Monday in the Official Gazette of the Canary Islands (BOC) and will be sent to the Parliament of the Canary Islands to be processed as a bill.
The president has not specified which professional sectors are affected but he has given as an example that "it does not make sense" that there are teachers who do not want to be vaccinated, although "it is legitimate", and have to teach children and young people, most of them vaccinated.
He commented that the Government has gone "to the maximum" of what the laws allow and "it is not a subterfuge" nor a way to "go against any court", on the contrary, it is about bringing together the more than twenty agreements of the last year in a single document that is "flexible" and can be modified if the pandemic improves or worsens.
With almost 30 articles and about 80 pages, the document establishes by law the use of masks, the safety distance or the capacity and maintains the limitation of people by alert levels in line with what the Superior Court of Justice of the Canary Islands (TSJC) has ratified this Thursday.
Alert levels that will be "updated"
According to Torres, the alert levels will also be "updated" in the interterritorial commission of Health and "from the moment they are updated, this decree law in the Canary Islands will also update them." In this regard, he explained that, in the islands that are at level 1, establishments may open until 03:00 hours, with a capacity of 100% outdoors and 75% indoors, maintaining groups of 10 people; and that at level 2 they may do so until 02:00 hours, with a capacity of 75% outdoors and 50% indoors and a maximum of six people per table.
At level 3 they may open until 01:00 hours with a capacity of 75% outdoors and 40% indoors and with a maximum of four people per table; and at level 4 they may also remain open until 01 hours, with a capacity of 75% outdoors and 25% indoors and with a maximum of four diners per table.
Torres also pointed out that "nightlife will remain open" in the Canary Islands, something that is allowed given the "high degree of vaccination" in the islands.
He also pointed out that for the islands that are at level 4, in case of departure travel, the vaccination certificate or a negative diagnostic test will be requested.
