Singapore tightens Covid curbs as variants drive cases

Singapore has reimposed tougher restrictions on gatherings and business activity after a sudden spike in Covid-19 infections, some of which were caused by new and more infectious strains of the disease.

Gatherings will be limited to a maximum of five people, down from eight currently. Stricter limits will be imposed on workplaces and sports events, while quarantine periods for any new arrivals from higher-risk countries will be extended from 14 to 21 days, the government said today. The new rules will be in place from 8-30 May.

The tougher measures are a reaction to the recent emergence of new clusters of Covid-19 cases, including one centred on a hospital. Case numbers are small compared with the waves of infections hitting countries such as India and Brazil, with just 60 new local cases reported in the last week, but they come after a long period in which Singapore was reporting zero or only a handful of local cases each week.

The restrictions also reflect concern about new variants of the disease that may be more resistant to vaccines. Almost 25 of the confirmed cases in the hospital cluster — nine out of 40 people — had received both doses of a Covid-19 vaccine. At least five had the Indian "double mutant" variant, the government said. None of those who were vaccinated got seriously ill.

"The new variant strains have higher attack rates. They are more infectious and causing larger clusters than before" and it is likely that more cases will emerge, education minister and co-head of the government's Covid-19 task force Lawrence Wong said.

Singapore has recorded over 62,000 coronavirus cases since the start of the pandemic but just 31 deaths.

By Kevin Foster