Meeting a friend for a walk outdoors could be temporarily prohibited under government restrictions on movement currently being drafted by the Prime Minister’s Office, according to a report by news agency STT.
The measures could be introduced for a limited period of time, up to three weeks, in regions where the coronavirus situation is in the community transmission phase, such as the Helsinki metropolitan area, STT added.
The restriction would mean that outdoor exercise could only be carried out alone or with members of the same household.
Other measures could see residents in community transmission regions ordered to stay at home except for essential purposes only, such as work, school or a visit to a grocery store.
Helsingin Sanomat reports (external link in Finnish) on Tuesday morning that the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) has recommended the government urgently begin preparing regulations to restrict outdoor movement.
According to the paper, THL has informed the government that new variants of the virus are spreading so rapidly, especially within the capital region, that Finland should introduce more stringent measures than those already in place.