Lithuanian cabinet won't consider opening non-food shops for now – PM

VILNIUS – The Lithuanian government will not consider, for now, allowing non-food shops and beauty salons to reopen, Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte said on Monday. 

"Today, we aren't going to consider specific decisions," she said at the start of the Cabinet's meeting. "There are several requests, but we won't consider them today, because they call for revising the requirements for specific areas of activity, which requires a separate discussion." 

The Lithuanian Employers' Confederation earlier on Monday called on the government to allow non-food shops to reopen, saying the current restrictions are unjustifiably distorting competition. 

The Lithuanian Association of Beauticians and Cosmetologists has also asked the government to consider allowing beauty professionals to resume work from February 1.

The former government of Prime Ministry Saulius Skvernelis placed Lithuania under a second lockdown on November 7 amid spiking coronavirus infections. Cafes, bars and restaurants, gyms and cinemas were closed and schools switched to online learning as part of the measures.

The new government tightened the coronavirus lockdown restrictions in mid-December, including ordering the closure of non-food shops and most services, and banning non-essential travel between municipalities.