[WATCH] Restaurants to get COVID-19 compliance stickers, face closure if found in breach

Restaurants and other establishments found to be adhering to all coronavirus protocols to be given compliance certificate which will be withdrawn if standards fall

Tourism Minister Julia Farrugia Portelli addressed a press conference on the relaxation of COVID-19 measures on Tuesday
Tourism Minister Julia Farrugia Portelli addressed a press conference on the relaxation of COVID-19 measures on Tuesday

Restaurants and other establishments set to open later this week will be given a compliance certificate if confirmed to be observing all COVID-19 protocols.

The certification will be displayed outside their premises to show they are “safe” on COVID-19 precautions.

Starting from today, restaurants, hotels, lidos and other licensed entities can carry out a self-assessment to determine if they are abiding by all coronavirus rules, and can subsequently contact the Malta Tourism Authority to request that their operations be inspected.

If, following the inspections – which both MTA and health authority officials are being authorised to conduct – the establishments are found to be fully in compliance with the COVID-19 protocols, they will be issued a compliance badge.

This badge will give customers peace of mind that the restaurants, hotels and the other operations concerned are safe to attend, Tourism Minister Julia Farrugia Portelli said during a press conference on Tuesday.

The required coronavirus protocols which licensed entities have to follow are being issued today, and were also explained by MTA CEO Johann Buttigieg during the press conference.

Buttigieg said that random inspections will continue throughout the coronavirus period, and any establishments given a certificate but later found to have not been keeping up the necessary safety standards willl have their badge taken away from them.

If they are twice found to be in breach of the protocols, the establishment will be forced to close, he said.

Farrugia Portelli did not clearly indicate whether the compliance certificate will be obligatory to have for restaurants and other establishments, when questioned by the press.

She said she expected hundreds of inspections to have already been carried out by the end of the week, with the majority of establishments having been inspected within around two weeks.

Farrugia Portelli said the lifting of certain coronavirus measures from this week is aimed at opening the doors for internal tourism. 

“Around 150,000 people went abroad on holiday last year. Although the airport is closed, the Maltese will still have the opportunity to take a break... They will have the chance to enjoy internal tourism, to explore Malta’s villages and to visit Gozo, all the while having their mind at rest that the places they go to are employing the highest safety standards,” she said.

Asked by MaltaToday for a reaction to Malta Hotels and Restaurants President Tony Zahra’s warning on Monday that there would be mass unemployment in the tourism industry unless the airport opened, Farrugia Portelli said the airport would certainly open in the future, but this would only happen once ongoing discussions, including at European level, are concluded, and once it is clear that the required safety parameters had been established.

“The current protocols are forming the basis for kickstarting internal tourism. Once we arrive at the stage for the airport to reopen, we must make sure that everyone’s mind is at rest about safety,” she said.