Workers who perform public functions in the State's direct administration services, central or deconcentrated, and public institutes will have time tolerance on Shrove Tuesday, according to an order from the Prime Minister.
A note from the executive sent to the Lusa agency reads that, “although Carnival Tuesday is not on the list of mandatory holidays stipulated by law, the Government decided, through an order signed by the Prime Minister [António Costa], grant point tolerance on March 01st”.
The same note states that “in Portugal there is a consolidated tradition of organizing parties during this period” of Carnival.
“Thus, a point tolerance is granted to workers who perform public functions in the services of the direct administration of the State, whether central or deconcentrated, and in public institutes, on March 1, 2022. for reasons of public interest, they must remain in operation during that period, in terms to be defined by the competent member of the Government”, it is added.
Last year, the Government did not grant a point tolerance on Carnival Tuesday [February 16, 2021] because the country is in general confinement due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
In February of last year, Portugal was in a state of emergency, with a general duty to collect - and consequent ban on public festivities - and with a wide range of activities closed to contain the spread of the disease.
Since António Costa took office as Prime Minister, in November 2015, this was the only time that he did not sign the point tolerance order on Shrove Tuesday.
The health situation in the country, according to the Government, is now very different from what it was in February of last year.
Last Thursday, the Council of Ministers approved a decree-law that established a relief from the measures in force to contain Covid-19, enacted the very next day by the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa.
With the new legislation, “the confinement of risky contacts is no longer in force; the telecommuting recommendation; the limits of capacity in establishments, equipment and other places open to the public; the requirement to present a digital certificate, except for border control; the requirement of a negative test result for access to major events, sports venues, bars and clubs”.
On the other hand, “the requirement of a negative test remains, except for holders of a certificate of recovery or a certificate of complete vaccination with a booster dose, for: visits to homes, visits to patients hospitalized in health care establishments ”, as well as the “use of a mask in interior spaces where it is currently required”, according to the statement from the Council of Ministers.
In addition to this decree-law, at the last meeting of the Council of Ministers, a resolution was also approved declaring the alert situation throughout the national mainland, with the calamity situation having ceased to apply.
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