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Poland to lift most COVID-19 curbs from March 1: PM

23.02.2022 13:00
Poland’s prime minister on Wednesday said the government would lift most COVID-19 restrictions from March 1 as the coronavirus pandemic eases.
Audio
Polands Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki speaks at a news conference in Warsaw on Wednesday.
Poland's Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki speaks at a news conference in Warsaw on Wednesday. PAP/Marcin Obara

Mateusz Morawiecki made the announcement at a news conference alongside his health minister, Adam Niedzielski.

“We are removing most restrictions, leaving only those which are the most necessary,” Morawiecki told reporters.

“Only wearing a mask in public spaces will still be compulsory, especially on public transport and in shops, where the distance between people is indeed small,” he added. 

“We are also restoring normal work in government offices,” Morawiecki announced.

He noted that until now remote working had been compulsory in public agencies and recommended in businesses.

“Today we are removing this recommendation," Morawiecki said, adding that government offices "will now return to normal functioning."

‘We can look to the future with hope’

Morawiecki told the news conference that more countries were removing coronavirus restrictions and returning to normal life after containing the omicron variant.

“And so we see that we can introduce far-reaching changes,” he said.

He cautioned that “the chapter of the COVID-19 pandemic” was not over yet, but added that “with the pandemic easing, we can look to the future with hope.”

Face masks, isolation, quarantine to stay: health minister

Meanwhile, his health minister announced that most restrictions on economic life would be lifted as of March 1.

Niedzielski told reporters that “essentially, only the purely epidemic restrictions, designed to limit the transmission of the virus, will remain in place.”

These include rules on wearing face masks, isolation and quarantine, he said.

Niedzielski added that the remaining curbs could also be lifted in the coming weeks and months, “subject to consultation with experts.”

He told the news conference that “the downward trend” in daily case numbers was “very strong” and that "infection numbers have been falling by more than 30 percent on a week-to-week basis" recently.

“As a result, after quickly reaching the height of the fifth wave, we are seeing an equally quick reduction in infections,” he said.

Niedzielski also told reporters that priority would now be given to "improving access to normal health services."

Polish Health Minister Adam Niedzielski. Polish Health Minister Adam Niedzielski. Photo: PAP/Marcin Obara

Poland on Wednesday reported 20,456 new coronavirus infections and 360 more deaths related to COVID-19, bringing the country's total number of cases during the pandemic to 5,602,680 and fatalities to 110,517.

(pm/gs)

Source: PAP

Click on the audio player above to listen to a report by Radio Poland's Agnieszka Bielawska.