Thanks to LANCELOT DIGITAL
The increase in covid cases throughout the Canary Islands and the fear that the Government of the Canary Islands, and the Cabildo de Lanzarote, will choose, as has happened on other occasions, to increase restrictive measures in Lanzarote, instead of increasing controls, has come to the tourist employers to take a step forward.
Indeed, Ashotel, FEHT, Asofuer and FTL have agreed to request the Government of the Canary Islands to institute the request for the COVID certificate for access to all public spaces, which means extending these controls to all public establishments, not only those tourism, including government buildings.
Entrepreneurs are committed to implementing this control system in spaces where people converge as a reasonable measure instead of imposing time and capacity restrictions. They advocate ensuring health security, but also the economy, keeping businesses open with security measures.
They point out that accommodation establishments have exercised responsible control over their facilities in all these months of the pandemic by requiring their clients to certify that they are free of the disease, so now, given the increase in infections, the responsibility for this control must be made Extensive to all sectors of activity – shops, museums, bars, restaurants, cinemas, discotheques, football stadiums and basketball pavilions among other sports facilities, etc. -, in addition to official buildings where attention is paid to the public.
They also consider that the imminent launch of an agile application that validates the information contained in these vaccination certificates is essential, through the QR code, and that this data is stored in that app for as long as it is legally necessary.
The hoteliers highlight “the good work” that has been done in our country in terms of vaccination and the majority response of the population, compared to other European states with lower rates and that now suffer unwanted situations with notable increases in infections, As is the case of Austria – with this new confinement that began this Monday, November 22, for 15 days – or Germany, which has announced that it will make vaccination legally mandatory for sensitive groups and will approve new restrictions for the unvaccinated.
Accommodation establishments have been responsible for requesting these controls for access to their facilities more than a year ago, when the COVID certificate had not yet been implemented at the European level at passenger entry and exit points; They were also exemplary in complying with security protocols and trained their staff, which has allowed them to be safe spaces, in which no notable outbreaks have occurred.
Hotels, safe spaces
In fact, it has been the hotel and non-hotel facilities that for a long time have exercised a true filter against the disease at the entrance of tourists, with the request for a vaccination certificate or negative COVID-19 test.
They consider that these controls at airports and public establishments should also be mandatory for national and local passengers, who as of December 1 will be subject to random screening in the case of nationals. “Controls must be carried out on a mandatory basis for everyone who accesses an establishment, be it a hotel, bar, restaurant, cinema, nightclub, museum, football stadium, shopping center … any place of public attendance, including government buildings that pay citizen attention “, insist the employers.
The Canarian tourism sector has been clear from the beginning that mass vaccination was the only way to try to keep this pandemic at bay, while it has worked hard to recover as much as possible the economic activity of accommodation establishments, always with the established security protocols.
