New restrictions for people in Jersey over the festive period
Jersey's government will bring in new restrictions for islanders over the festive period.
The Chief Minister Senator John Le Fondre announced the measures in a press conference this morning (23 December).
Ministers have been advised to roll out these restrictions to flatten the infection curve and reduce the number of positive cases in the island.
There are currently 989 active cases of coronavirus in Jersey.
The new measures include:
Non-essential shops closing on Christmas Eve . Book shops, gift shops, fashion retailers, bookmakers, hair and beauty businesses and other stores must close their doors at 6pm on Thursday 24 December until at least 11 January . Supermarkets, banks, chemists, petrol stations, garden centres and post offices will be among those that will be allowed to remain open.
Restaurants and cafes will remain closed unless offering takeaway services
Jersey Heritage is temporarily closing all of its sites from today (Wednesday 23 December) following the announcement this morning by the Government.
Visiting people indoors or in gardens is not allowed.
On Christmas and Boxing Day only the rules are relaxed and you can have a maximum of ten people over for two gatherings. For Jersey's Portuguese, Polish, Romanian and other communities, this guidance will mean that the traditional Christmas Eve celebrations cannot take place.
Outdoor gatherings will be limited to 10 people instead of 20.
There will be some exemptions to the rule of ten in a controlled settings including places of worship, weddings and funerals.
At the border, anyone arriving from or transiting through the UK will have to isolate until the have had a third negative test result on Day 10.
The return to school has been delayed until 6 January.