Senator John Le Fondré made the statement after UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that he would be moving England into ‘Plan B’ measures following concerns about the new ‘Omicron’ variant of the virus.
Those living in the country will soon be asked to work from home if they are able to, masks will be legally mandated in most public places and anyone attending nightclubs and certain hospitality venues will have to show a pass demonstrating they are fully vaccinated or have recently had a negative lateral flow test result.
Covid certification has already become mandatory for entry to nightclubs and other large-scale venues in Scotland and Wales.
Meanwhile, in France, nightclubs have been ordered to close for a month from this weekend and citizens asked to work from home where they can.
Senator Le Fondré said: ‘At present there are no detected cases of the Omicron variant in the Island, our hospital capacity and resilience remain high, and there has been a steady decrease in the total number of active cases over the past days.
‘As a result, ministers have taken the decision not to implement any additional restrictive measures at this stage. We must continue to act based on our own Covid position and clinical evidence, and not act prematurely based on changes in other jurisdictions.
‘Ministers will continue to monitor the situation closely over the coming days and will take appropriate action if we anticipate a significant rise in cases or hospitalisation.’
Senator Le Fondré urged Islanders to take personal responsibility for preventing the spread of Covid by wearing masks in shops, signing up to the lateral flow test programme and get vaccinated.
This evening Jersey’s Competent Authorities Ministers met to discuss the Island’s COVID-19 position, the risk posed by the Omicron variant, and the measures announced today by the UK Prime Minister and have issued the following statement: https://t.co/VKcH8srb4t pic.twitter.com/RzBKrXJUd7
— Sen. Lyndon Farnham (@lyndonfarnham) December 8, 2021
‘Approximately 50,000 registrations have been received to date across the home, school and workplace LFT programmes. Please continue to use these tests to keep your family, your friends and your colleagues safe, especially if attending a public event or Christmas party,’ he said.
He added: ‘If you are a young person who is eligible for a second dose of the vaccine or an adult who is eligible for a booster dose, I urge you to book your appointment as soon as it is available to you. Equally, if you have not yet received a first dose of the vaccine, please do book an appointment; it’s not too late to start protecting yourself and others.’
