Faced with the threat of an epidemic rebound from Covid-19, the health restriction measures are maintained, Prime Minister Jean Castex announced Thursday.
An extended curfew to 6 p.m. could be decided on Friday in ten new departments.
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"It is out of the question to let our guard down" in the face of the Covid-19 epidemic, and in particular the British variant of the virus, which is more contagious.
During a press conference Thursday, Prime Minister Jean Castex maintained the health restrictions in force, while raising the possibility of extending the curfew to 6 p.m. in a dozen new departments.
Vaccination should also speed up.
Internationally, the United States recorded a death record: nearly 4,000 deaths in 24 hours and Brazil exceeded the threshold of 200,000 victims.
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Information to remember
Jean Castex maintains restrictions and promises acceleration of vaccination
More than 21,000 new cases in France, two clusters of the British variant identified
The United States has a record of deaths in 24 hours.
Status quo on health restrictions
Faced with the threat of an epidemic rebound, Prime Minister Jean Castex maintained the restrictions in force on the national territory.
All establishments and equipment currently closed due to the coronavirus epidemic "will remain so until the end of this month," he announced at a press conference.
"Museums, cinemas, theaters, theaters, sports or leisure facilities will not experience any relaxation in the coming weeks," he added, thus showering the hopes of these sectors which hoped to reopen soon.
As for the bars and restaurants, they will not reopen before "at least mid-February".
A point will be made with mountain professionals on January 20 to study a possible reopening of the ski lifts in early February.
The government, on the other hand, plans to extend the curfew to 6 p.m., already in force in 15 departments since Saturday, in ten new departments.
A decision will be made on Friday.
The Prime Minister did not rule out "additional national measures" if "this would prove to be necessary depending on developments in the coming days", leaving the threat of a third re-containment to hover.
Find out here what to remember from Jean Castex's announcements.
Update on the vaccination campaign
Under fire from critics for slow start-up, the government, through the voice of the Minister of Health Olivier Véran clarified the French strategy and laid the foundations for a new calendar.
Already 45,000 people have already been vaccinated in France, "over the past five days", explains the minister, who estimates that a rise in power will make it possible to reach one million at the end of January.
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Olivier Véran also recalled that France has ordered 78 million doses by before the summer, for the five most advanced vaccines.
From January 18, vaccination will be open to everyone over 75, with a simplified procedure, a simple questionnaire.
Vaccination centers in town will be open in the coming weeks, first 100, then 300 then 500. Find here all the government announcements on vaccination.
More than 21,000 new cases in 24 hours
The number of confirmed cases of Covid-19, according to the latest report from Public Health France published Thursday, was 21,703, against 25,379 the day before and nearly 20,000 cases seven days previously.
The positivity rate, which measures the percentage of people positive for Covid-19 out of all those tested, was 5.7% (compared to 5.4% Wednesday and 3.2% the previous Thursday), according to Jean Castex .
The number of hospitalized patients stands at 24,488, or 260 less than the previous day's total, with 1,441 new hospitalizations in 24 hours.
The number of patients in intensive care, where one in two beds is occupied by a Covid patient according to the Prime Minister, is 2,573, or 34 less than the day before, with 181 new admissions in 24 hours.
With 277 deaths in hospital, the disease has now killed 66,841 people, including 46,539 dead in hospital, since the start of the epidemic, the health agency said.
Two clusters "at risk" of the British variant in France
Two "risk clusters" of the British variant of the coronavirus, more transmissible, have been detected in France, Brittany and Ile-de-France, the Ministry of Health said Thursday, stressing that this "threat" is taken very seriously.
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For the outbreak detected in Île-de-France, no link with the United Kingdom has been established, which suggests that the British variant is already circulating in France.
In total, 19 cases of contamination by this variant have so far been proven throughout France, as well as three others by a different variant initially spotted in South Africa, said the Ministry of Health in a press release.
Prime Minister Jean Castex announced Thursday that the French borders with the United Kingdom, closed on December 20, will remain closed "until further notice" in order to prevent the circulation of the variant, specifying that "only certain categories of people" will be able to cross it, provided they are tested before entering France.
New record in the United States
The United States on Thursday recorded a new record of deaths in 24 hours, reaching almost the mark of 4,000 daily deaths, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University which reference
California authorities have deployed at least 166 refrigerated trailers to serve as temporary morgues in hospitals overwhelmed by Covid-19-related deaths.
With at least 2,500 deaths from the coronavirus each week, California has become one of the main hotbeds of the pandemic in the United States and traditional mortuaries are full.
Tragic start of a year in Brazil
Brazil has passed the threshold of 200,000 deaths from Covid-19 and specialists expect the worst at the start of the year, while the chaotic management of the Bolsonaro government is criticized from all sides.
The virus has killed 200,498 people in this country of 212 million people, the second heaviest death toll after the United States.
The latest official bulletin from the Ministry of Health shows other worrying data: a record of new contaminations (87,843) and no less than 1,524 new deaths recorded in the last 24 hours.