SINGAPORE – Singapore is implementing a two-week suspension of operations from today for over 400 nightlife establishments that are serving as food outlets amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
The decision was taken after a number of infections arose from karaoke lounges and clubs, said the republic’s Multi-Ministry Task Force (MTF) on Covid-19.
Since last October, it said, nightlife establishments have not been allowed to operate, but upon representations by the industry, were given the nod to pivot to the food and beverage business.
The Health Ministry preliminarily confirmed 53 new cases of local transmissions, with 32 belonging to the karaoke cluster, taking its total caseload to 120 in a week.
In a virtual press conference, MTF co-chairman Gan Kim Yong described the new infections as “a major setback in our journey to recovery”.
“We must respond to this emerging cluster quickly, especially to protect those who have not yet been fully vaccinated.”
To mitigate community spread, Singapore will tighten community safety management measures for “higher-risk indoor, mask-off settings” from Monday to August 8.
The five-person cap for dine-in in groups will be reduced to just two.
However, a fully vaccinated person, and a person who has recovered from Covid-19 within 270 days, will be allowed to dine-in in a group of up to five.
An unvaccinated person who has a valid negative pre-event test result for the duration of the dine-in, or a child aged 12 and below, may also join in a group of five. – Bernama, July 16, 2021
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