It was just announced that the Government of the Canary Islands has requested today from the Superior Court of Justice of the Canary Islands (TSJC) to ratify a night curfew on islands placed at levels 2 and 3 on New Year's Eve and on Three Kings night.
This information was announced in a press conference earlier today by the Minister of Health, Blas Trujillo, after a Council meeting. The Superior Court now has 72 hours to respond to the Government's request.
In the way it was formulated, the curfew would affect the islands of Tenerife, Gran Canaria and Fuerteventura, which are currently at level 3 and La Gomera and La Palma, which are at level 2.
On islands at level 3 (Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura) the curfew would be in place between 1:00 am and 6:00 am on January 1st, meaning on New Year's Eve night and also on January 2nd and January 5th.
On islands at level 2 (La Gomera, La Palma) the curfew would be in place between 2:00 am and 6:00 am on January 1st, meaning on New Year's Eve night and also on January 2nd and January 5th.
Trujillo also mentioned that it is highly likely that Lanzarote and El Hierro will also pass to Alert Level 2 this week, which means that the curfew would apply there as well.
The counselor recalled that the high increase in incidence registered in the Canary Islands in recent weeks, the uncertainty about the new Ómicron variant, which is already predominant in the Canary Islands, and the existing pressure on the Healthcare system, which has doubled in recent weeks, such as hospital care, which already has 20% occupancy of ICU beds due to COVID cases, justify the implementation of this measure.
On the other hand, the counselor recalled that the most affected age group, the one that includes people between 20 and 39 years old, coincides with the one that has the most social contacts, the most opportunities to go to nightlife venues in closed spaces and the one that has a lower percentage of vaccination compared to older groups in the population.