Brussels businesses adhering to proper hygiene and cleaning requirements in light of Covid-19 could apply for a label letting the public know of this fact, but only 158 have made use of it.
The label is meant to reassure tourists and other people visiting hotels, cafes and cultural venues, according to Bruzz. A number of criteria must be met in order to earn one. These mainly involve signage, access to hand gel, good air quality and floor markings for waiting areas.
In April, only 101 establishments had received the label, including 41 hotels and 22 attractions or museums, State Secretary for Tourism Pascal Smet (one.brussels-Vooruit) told La Capitale.
“There are now 158 establishments with the label: 49 tourist accommodations, 36 attractions and museums, 29 theatres and cultural centres, 25 places of interest, 14 guided tours, 4 restaurants and cafés and one caterer,” Smet said.
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Brussels MP Geoffroy Coomans de Brachene (MR), who had asked Smet about the success of the measure, was disappointed in the results.
“We have gone from 101 to 158 certified establishments in more than six months, which is almost nothing,” Coomans said.
“Out of 1,500 restaurants, not one has been labelled. Not even all of our 200 hotels are on the list. We have the possibility of labelling 3,000 places and we are down to 158.”
Smet said that almost €45,000 had been set aside to validate the first 150 applications received and to randomly check 100 companies.