Government today made some adjustments to its emergency order restrictions, giving an additional hour for supermarket shopping, abandoning the alphabet shopping system for petrol stations and granting permission for computer stores to do business again.
This afternoon Acting Prime Minister Santia Bradshaw revealed that effective immediately supermarkets would open from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. to facilitate the droves of shoppers who were flocking to outlets daily.
The decision to extend opening hours for supermarkets comes three days after president of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Trisha Tannis and supermarket owner Andrew Bynoe called on authorities to allow retailers more time to facilitate shoppers.
As Government continues to tweak its initiatives, people using the services of gas stations to purchase fuels will no longer have to do so based on their surname and computer stores will be allowed to reopen to facilitate curbside pickups and deliveries only.
Bradshaw also said that consideration was being given to allow fast food restaurants to operate by delivery or drive-thru.
Speaking during the press conference at Ilaro Court, the Acting Prime Minister said the Cabinet, the Emergency Organisation Committee as well as the members of the Parliamentary group had met and agreed on the changes.
“The Government has repeatedly stressed that we are dealing with an evolving situation that will require constant review of our response plan as the scientific evidence and behavioral changes of the population emerge.
“Effective immediately gas station operators will discontinue the use of the alphabet system of surnames when it comes to the purchase of fuels such as gasoline, diesel and kerosene, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) as well as cellular top-ups. Grocery shopping at supermarkets and minimarts may now start at 7 a.m. and run until 4 p.m. while maintaining the previously mentioned break at 11 a.m.,” Bradshaw said.
She said supermarkets had been given the go-ahead to allow people still in the line after the deadline to do their shopping.
She explained that those persons whose shopping days would have fallen on the two upcoming bank holidays April 28, National Heroes Day and May 1, May Day, would be permitted to shop during the times allocated to essential workers next week only.
Bradshaw said the decision to allow computer stores to open was based on the fact that steps were being taken to utilize online teaching, as well as the growing numbers of workers operating from their homes.
She however, maintained there was to be no in-store shopping.
As it related to the limited opening for fast food restaurants, she said that was still being discussed.
“We are considering all options but I think at this time as you can appreciate, we have to obviously rely on the medical authorities to guide us in this process,” she noted.
Despite these changes, Bradshaw reiterated that the country was still under curfew.
She said while there had been no positive tests for COVID-19 in the last five days it was not a sign for Barbadians to break that curfew.
“All Barbadians are reminded that a strict curfew remains in place between the hours of 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. Except for essential services, movement during these hours is allowed only for permitted activities…
“The maintenance of the regime of restricted activities is critical if we are to continue to record favourable results in our efforts to halt the spread of COVID-19,” she said.
