Weddings given special covid permission not to chop guest lists

Thursday 19 November 2020

Four Jersey couples have been given special permission to hold their weddings this weekend outside of new covid restrictions on gatherings.

From tomorrow (Friday 20 November), the maximum number of attendees at a formal indoor gatherings will be reducing from 40 to 20.

But the Government has told Express it has granted special dispensations to allow four unions to go ahead as planned, tomorrow and Saturday.

It means the couples won’t have to make difficult last-minute choices about who to chop from the guest list.

From 02:00 on Fri 20 Nov, controlled events will reduce from 40 people to 20 people and informal gatherings will reduce from 20 people to 10 people. An exception to this limit has been made for funeral services which will reduce from 80 people to 40 people https://t.co/7QdOPoT4Dt pic.twitter.com/a5EBMxbnBF

— Government of Jersey (@GovJersey) November 18, 2020

Health Minister Deputy Richard Renouf commented: “We have introduced a number of new public health measures in response to the rise in Covid cases, as we want to avoid the need for another lockdown in Jersey.

"One of those measures restricts the number of people who can attend indoor events like weddings. We understand that making changes to important, pre-planned family events at short notice could be difficult and upsetting. So we have agreed that the four weddings planned for this weekend can go ahead with up to 40 attendees.”

However, the couples and their attendees won’t be able to pop the champagne and dance into the wee hours, as they are still being asked to abide by new licensing rules. Any establishments serving alcohol will have to close at 22:00, with all guests out by 22:30 from Friday.

The new advice follows international research suggesting that the consumption of alcohol reduces people’s ability to maintain physical distancing.

Pictured: New licensing rules mean licensed premises won't be able to serve past 22:00 and must have all clients out by 22:30.

It has also been found that loud music encourages individuals to speak loudly, shout and lean into one another, increasing the risk of respiratory droplets passing from one person to another.

The new rules on gatherings were announced alongside several others at a press conference on Monday, in which the medic leading Jersey’s response to the pandemic, Dr Ivan Muscat, made a plea for islanders to follow five key rules:

1. "Help us reduce the size and frequency of gatherings, especially with alcohol.
2. Wear masks in indoor public spaces.
3. Keep following the basic routines of physical distancing and hand washing.
4. If you need to self-isolate, please follow the rules.
5. If you have a customer-facing job, please take a test when asked."