Paris (AFP)
Edouard Philippe announced Saturday evening the closure at midnight and "until further notice" of all "places receiving the public not essential to the life of the country", calling on the French to "more discipline" in the face of the coronavirus pandemic .
Restaurants, bars, nightclubs, cinemas are expected to close. Shops are also affected, with the exception of food stores, pharmacies, banks, tobacconists or petrol stations, said the Prime Minister.
On the other hand, the first round of municipal elections will take place on Sunday "as planned", on condition of "strictly respecting the instructions for distancing and prioritizing the elderly and frail", added Mr. Philippe, asking "calm" and " civism "to the French.
"All the services essential to the life of our fellow citizens will obviously remain open," said the Prime Minister.
If "urban transport will continue to function", the government urges the French to limit "their journeys and in particular to avoid inter-urban journeys".
"I say it with seriousness: we must all show more discipline in the application of these measures," insisted Mr. Philippe, who consulted on Saturday the Scientific Council made up of ten experts.
"What we have to do at the moment is simply to avoid gathering as much as possible, limit friendly and family gatherings, use public transport only to go to work and only if the physical presence at the work is essential, only go out of your home to do your essential shopping, do some exercise or vote, "he said.
Mr. Philippe particularly deplored having "seen too many people in cafes, restaurants". "I would be happy in normal times, but for a few weeks it is not what we have to do," he added, noting that "the first measures taken to limit gatherings were imperfectly applied".
On Saturday, the Director General of Health Jérôme Salomon announced that 830 new cases of patients infected with the new coronavirus had been detected in France, for a total of 4,500 since the start of the epidemic which has left 91 dead so far. in the country.
In this context, France passed Saturday to "stage 3" of the epidemic, meaning that the virus now circulates throughout the territory.
© 2020 AFP