Deputy Premier Geneviève Guilbault announced on Wednesday a province-wide restriction on the number of customers permitted inside all types of businesses.

The new rule was confirmed by the Regional Director of Public Health, Dr. Yv Bonnier-Viger.

According to Bonnier-Viger, although the alert levels by color distinguish and adjust in each region, and in each MRC in Gaspésie and the Islands with distinct epidemiological portraits, he sees no contradiction with Wednesday's wall-to-wall announcement.

He explained that the COVID-19 virus is as contagious in the red zone as it is in the yellow zone and that, as the holiday season approaches, the increased traffic in businesses presents risks even in less affected areas.

The new rule limits the capacity of stores, including grocery and drug stores, to the equivalent of one customer per 20 square meters of sales floor and to only one customer at a time for small establishments with less space.

Bonnier-Viger also confirmed the presence of a new active case of COVID-19 in the Magdalen Islands by explaining that the epidemiological investigation allows to reassure the population about the risks of propagation.

Bonnier-Viger believes that if the government were to revoke permission to hold two gatherings of 10 people or less from up to three different households in red zones between Dec. 24-27, yellow zone measures would not be affected.