Austria is locking down its unvaccinated population in an effort to stop a new surge in Covid cases.
The move means unvaccinated people older than 12 will be banned from leaving their homes from midnight on Sunday, except for basic activities including working, food shopping or going for a walk.
Thought to impact roughly 2 million individuals, the restrictions will allow people who have not had a vaccine to leave their home for a coronavirus jab.
The plan is far from unexpected – with the Government warning last month that it could restrict the movements of those who have not been jabbed amid a surge in cases.
Austria has one of the lowest vaccination rates in Europe, with only around 65% of people double-jabbed.
It comes after the Netherlands imposed a partial lockdown earlier this week, becoming the first western European nation to do so since the summer.
The Austrian government are concerned that hospitals will struggle to cope with the growing influx of Covid patients.
Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg said on Sunday: ‘It’s our job as the government of Austria to protect the people.
‘Therefore we decided that starting Monday… there will be a lockdown for the unvaccinated.’
Those aged under 12 in the country – which has a population of around 9 million – will not face restrictions as they are not yet able to be vaccinated.
The lockdown will initially last for 10 days, with police asked to check people outside to make sure they are vaccinated, Mr Schallenberg said.
In recent weeks, the country has faced a surge of infections.
Some 11,552 new cases were reported on Sunday, compared to 8,554 the previous week.
The seven-day infection rate stands at 775.5 new cases per 100,000 inhabitants.
In comparison, the rate is at 289 in neighbouring Germany.
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