Austria’s national lockdown has officially been extended until December 11 amid signs that restrictions are slowing the spread of coronavirus.
The extension of the country’s lockdown, which started on November 22, was signed off by a parliamentary committee on Tuesday, who can only extend the measures by 10-days at a time.
The only significant change to the measures are that essential shops will now have to close by 7pm, instead of 9pm. The change will take effect on Thursday, December 2.
The rules now explicitly allow the sale of Christmas trees.
Austria’s government imposed the country’s fourth national lockdown in a bid to curb Covid-19 deaths and hospitalisations, as the hardest-hit regions warned intensive care units were reaching capacity.
It also became the first country in the world to make vaccination a legal requirement, with all residents needing to get an appointment for a jab by February 1, 2022.
Under the lockdown, people can only leave their homes for specific reasons including buying essential items, exercise and going to the doctors.
Schools and day care centres have remained open for essential workers, but parents have been asked to keep their children at home if possible.
Officials say lockdown restrictions for unvaccinated residents will last beyond December 11.
The country has one of the lowest vaccination rates in Western Europe, with just under 67 per cent of the population having two doses.
But there are signs that the country’s seven-day infection rate has begun to decline.
It stood at 894.2 cases per 100,000 residents on Tuesday, down from more than 1,100 on the day the lockdown started.
