The French will begin the path of deconfinement on May 11. In a 30-minute television address and while the Covid-19 epidemic claimed nearly 15,000 lives in France, President Emmanuel Macron announced that "the epidemic is starting to slow down" and prolonged the confinement until that date.

"Monday May 11 will only be possible if we continue to be civic, responsible, obey the rules and if the spread of the virus has actually continued to slow," he added. The government will present a deconfinement plan, with a weekly reassessment of the situation, "within 15 days".

According to the latest report published Monday evening, the coronavirus epidemic has killed 14,967 people in France, 574 more in the last 24 hours. However, for the fifth consecutive day, the number of patients newly admitted to intensive care fell: 24 fewer patients compared to Sunday.

"Gradual" reopening of schools

"From May 11, we will gradually reopen nurseries, schools, colleges and high schools," said Emmanuel Macron.

On the other hand, higher education establishments will not be physically accessible until the summer. "The government will specify for each one the good organization which will be necessary, in particular for the examinations and the contests", he explained.

The president asked the most vulnerable to remain confined after May 11.

Public places closed after May 11

"Bars, restaurants, cafes, hotels, cinemas, theaters, concert halls and museums will remain closed at this stage," said Emmanuel Macron. The same goes for festivals and cultural events, which will not take place "before mid-July".

Tests for people "with symptoms" and "masks for the general public"

The president recognized "failures and weaknesses" regarding access to the masks and equipment necessary for the crisis. He said that from May 11, the country will be able to carry out screening tests for all people with symptoms. "Until then and in the coming weeks, we will continue to increase the number of tests every day," said Emmanuel Macron. "People with the virus will be able to be quarantined, taken care of and followed by a doctor," he added.

From May 11 also, in "connection with the mayors, the state will have to allow each French to get a mask for the general public" to protect themselves from the coronavirus, said the head of state.

Aid for businesses and the most modest

Emmanuel Macron spoke of "a specific plan for the sectors which, like tourism, hotels, catering, culture and events, will be durably affected". He thus spoke of setting up "cancellation of charges and specific aid".

He hoped that the banks could "shift all the maturities much more massively than they did" and insisted that "the insurance must be there".

The French president also announced "exceptional assistance to the poorest families" and to "precarious students".

Closed borders and international solidarity

The president also announced that France's borders with non-European countries "will remain closed until further notice".

France and Europe will have to help Africa to fight against the coronavirus by "massively canceling its debt", he also insisted. Beyond a European "refoundation", "we must also know how to help our neighbors in Africa to fight the virus more effectively, also to help them economically by massively canceling their debts," said the head of the 'State.

For Emmanuel Macron, the health crisis must be "a moment of truth" for Europe, with more "unity and solidarity". In the coming weeks, "I will try to bring our voice to Europe in order to have more unity and solidarity," he said.

To reinvent oneself"

The French president did not go into the details of the "after" -coronavirus, but he called for "rebuilding French agricultural, health, industrial and technological independence".

"We will have to build a strategy where we will find the long term, the possibility of planning, low carbon, prevention, resilience," he said. "Let’s know how to reinvent ourselves, me first".

The reactions

In opposition, the leader of the rebels Jean-Luc Mélenchon criticized a "deconfinement without planning the conditions for deconfinement, it is extremely dangerous!".

"Setting health guidelines on testing capacity is crazy," said Julien Bayou, national secretary of EELV environmentalists.

The boss of the Republicans, Christian Jacob, estimated that "words will no longer be enough" and that faced with the delay, "we must now anticipate the recovery of the economy sector by sector of activity".

Medef said he was "satisfied that the president has set a course to get the country back on track".

Find the announcements of the presidential address and the reactions of the political and trade union world on our liveblog:

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