Netherlands: cafetiers and restaurateurs sue government to lift restrictions

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The largest Dutch restaurant organization said on Monday it is filing a complaint against the government in an attempt to lift the anti-COVID restrictions that have led to bars and restaurants being closed since mid-October.

Prime Minister Mark Rutte and his Minister of Health Hugo de Jonge are expected to announce Tuesday a slight relaxation of health measures, including the reopening of hairdressing salons and certain schools. But the curfew put in place from 9 p.m. to 4:30 a.m. is expected to remain in effect for three more weeks and no relaxation is envisaged for bars and restaurants, according to Dutch media.

“We are very disappointed with the government,” said Rober Willemsen, president of the Royal Horeca Netherlands restaurant association. “We tried until the last moment to (..) find a strategy to see what would be possible instead of keeping everything hermetically closed,” he added in a statement.

“The situation is desperate and once again entrepreneurs in the restaurant business are deprived of any prospect.”

The financial support granted since the start of the pandemic by the government “has not covered the fixed costs which are accumulating”, he added. “The compulsory closure puts disproportionate pressure on this sector”

The organization, which claims to represent around 20,000 companies and 255,000 employees, wants judges to order the reopening “as soon as possible” and financial compensation