Farmers’ markets and selected shops and services to reopen on April 12

Farmers’ markets and selected shops and services will be allowed to open as of Monday, April 12, Trade and Industry Minister Karel Havlíček said following Tuesday’s government session.

The government approved the reopening of shops with children's clothing and footwear, shops selling stationery, dry cleaners, laundries, and locksmiths. Most shops and services have been closed since October with a brief exemption in the run-up to Christmas.

Deputy prime minister and head of the central crisis staff, Jan Hamáček, said in an interview for the Mladá fronta Dnes daily on Tuesday that restaurant gardens may be allowed to reopen at the end of April.

The government will not ask the lower house to extend the state of emergency beyond April 11, meaning that the night curfew and the ban on travel between districts will not apply after that date.