Phase Two of Singapore's re-opening set for Friday

SINGAPORE will be moving into Phase Two of reopening from Friday (after June 18, 11.59pm), while students from all levels will return to school daily from June 29, said the Multi-Ministry Taskforce at a press conference on Monday.

On the retail front, businesses may re-open their physical outlets and food and beverage (F&B) dine-in will also be allowed to resume, subject to liquor sales and consumption ceasing at 10.30pm. However, live music and television and video screenings will not be allowed in all F&B outlets at this stage. 

Larger public venues with high human traffic such as malls and large standalone retail outlets will be subject to capacity limits, and operators will be required to prevent crowds or lone queues from building up within and in the immediate vicinity of their premises, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) in a statement.

Separately, personal health and wellness, and home-based services will also be allowed to resume. Registered clubs and societies, as well as tuition and other private enrichment classes can resume (with the exception of singing or voice training classes). All other healthcare services, including eldercare services in the community, individual health screening and aesthetic services, will also resume. Face-to-face visitations at residential facilities for the elderly (including nursing homes, welfare homes, sheltered homes and adult disability homes) will also resume. 

Finally, sports, parks and other public facilities will open. This also applies to facilities in private settings such as condominiums and clubs. 

While Phase Two will see the resumption of most activities, they are subject to the following safe distancing principles: 

- As a default, measures should be put in place to ensure that individuals maintain safe distancing of at least one metre at all times, said MOH. Where it is not feasible or practical to apply this safe distancing measures between individuals, it can instead be enforced between groups, with each group made up of no more than five persons. 

- Small-group social gatherings of up to any five persons can resume. Within the home, households may receive up to five visitors at any one time. 

- Businesses that are allowed to operate do not need to apply for an exemption before resuming operations. But they are required to submit the number of workers who are working on-site via the GoBusiness portal within two weeks of the date of resumption of on-site operations. Telecommuting must remain the default for all businesses where feasible. Further guidance for the various sectors will be provided by the relevant agencies in the coming days. 

While the vast majority of activities will be allowed to resume at the start of Phase Two, the resumption of a small number of activities will take some time. These include: religious services and congregations; large cultural venues such as libraries and museums; large-scale events and venues such as conferences, exhibitions, concerts and trade fairs; and entertainment venues such as bars, nightclubs, karaoke outlets, cinemas, theatres, as well as indoor and outdoor attractions. 

MOH also issued a range of guidelines for specific activities and settings, including weddings, wakes and funerals, workplaces, and schools and institutes of higher learning (IHLs). For weddings, wedding solemnisations at home and at ROM or ROMM may take place with up to 10 persons (excluding the solemniser). At other venues, they may take place with up to 20 persons (excluding the solemniser), subject to the venue's capacity limit based on safe management principles. For wakes and funerals, up to 20 persons may be present at any one time. 

"Phase Two is a significant step in moving towards a new Covid-safe normal. The multi-ministry taskforce will continue to monitor the situation closely, with the aim of continuing to ease measures, until we reach a new normal in Phase Three," stated MOH. "Our goal is to reopen our economy and society progressively, while controlling the infection and providing maximum protection for vulnerable groups, such as our seniors and those with medical conditions."