Netherlands enters partial lockdown as Covid cases soar

Non-essentials shops will close at 6pm every day, while supermarkets, restaurants and hotels will close at 8pm.

(Getty Images)

The Netherlands has reintroduced Covid restrictions over winter as it faces record numbers of infections.

It became the first western European country to return to a partial lockdown since summer and will see shops, bars and restaurants close early, as many experience a surge in cases.

Caretaker prime minister Mark Rutte announced the measures will come into effect from Saturday and are planned to last for three weeks.

Non-essentials shops will close at 6pm, while supermarkets, restaurants and hotels will close at 8pm.

A 1.5m social distancing rule will also be reintroduced, and no more than four people over 13-years-old can visit a home.

Schools, theatres and cinemas will remain open.

People who are able to work from home should do so, the PM said, while spectators will be banned from sporting events in the coming weeks - including the Netherlands’ World Cup qualifier against Norway on Tuesday.

In a televised address on Friday evening, Mr Rutte said: “Tonight we are bringing a very unpleasant message with very unpleasant and far-reaching measures.

“The virus is everywhere and needs to be combated everywhere.”

The move comes as the Netherlands topped 16,000 cases for the second day in a row, surpassing the previous record of just under 13,000 in December 2020.

The vast majority of the country has been vaccinated, with 85 per cent of the population having been fully jabbed.

The Netherlands has recorded 2.27 million cases and some 18,695 deaths since the beginning of the pandemic.