Paris (AFP)
France is approaching the milestone of 15,000 deaths linked to Coronavirus (14,967) but, for the fifth consecutive day, Monday, the number of patients in intensive care has decreased. "The epidemic is starting to slow down" and "hope is reborn", underlined the president during his address on Monday evening, while acknowledging that France was "obviously not sufficiently prepared" for the pandemic .
An address that was eagerly awaited after almost a month of confinement since it was watched by 36.7 million viewers, an absolute record.
The displayed "humility" of the President of the Republic is greeted by many editorialists on Tuesday, who also note the "hope" given to the French with the announcement of the "keel date".
But "May 11 is a target date. What announced by the President of the Republic, it is not the deconfinement on May 11, it is the confinement until May 11", hammered on France Inter Christophe Castaner, Minister of the Interior.
Voices are already rising to demand more clarity. "There are still too many unknowns and it is necessary that the government very quickly give the elements which would make it possible to understand how this history can be executed over time", thus asked the first secretary of the PS Olivier Faure Tuesday on Franceinfo TV .
One subject is particularly debated: the Head of State created the surprise, by announcing that from May 11, would be reopened "gradually nurseries, schools, colleges and high schools", while in education higher, "classes will not resume physically until summer". However, bars, restaurants and cinemas will remain closed.
"May 11 is a month away and the question is whether we will be able to protect students, parents and teachers at the same time," said Mr. Faure.
- Reviews -
The same concerns and criticisms among teachers. "It is anything but serious to reopen schools on May 11 because we are told that all public places are closed, cinemas, theaters, but not schools when we know that it is a place high transmission, high contamination, there is a lack of precaution, it seems to be in total contradiction with the rest ", reacted Francette Popineau, secretary general of Snuipp-FSU, first primary union, to AFP.
Another strong marker, there will be no major festivals or large gatherings until at least mid-July: the Avignon festival threw in the towel Monday evening, the Eurockéennes in Belfort Tuesday morning. What will happen for the Tour de France? And the Cannes Festival?
In addition, France's borders with non-European countries "will remain closed until further notice", said Macron.
On the side of positive reactions, the employers declared themselves "satisfied" that the president "set a course to restart the country" from May 11, with the exception of the hotel and restaurant sector excluded from the deconfinement.
Medef also hailed as "important" the "good news" on the extension until May 11 of aid for businesses, short-time working measures and solidarity funds for small businesses.
Partial unemployment in France, which currently concerns 8 million employees, will cost 24 billion euros, said Minister of Economy Bruno Le Maire on BFMTV / RMC on Tuesday, adding that the public aid effort for the economy would reach "more than 100 billion euros. The part of the solidarity fund reserved for companies threatened with bankruptcy will be strengthened and the amount of this fund raised to a total of 7 billion euros, also said Le Maire.
Beyond the maintenance of 1,500 euros for companies with a fall of more than 50% of their turnover, there is a "second stage which will be raised from 2,000 to 5,000 euros" for companies threatened with bankruptcy, further specified the Minister of Economy.
- Screening in question-
But the picture is still just as bleak on the economic front: the government forecasts an 8% drop in gross domestic product in France in 2020. And France should experience a public deficit around 9% of GDP this year and a debt of 115%, announced Tuesday the Minister of Public Accounts Gérald Darmanin on Fanceinfo.
How to plan deconfinement? The operation could prove catastrophic if a system of massive tests and isolation of infected people were not put in place, according to a study carried out in particular by Inserm.
From May 11, "the multiplication of screening points", for anyone with symptoms, "we can do", assured the Minister of Health Olivier Véran Tuesday morning on RTL.
The minister wants "to innovate", that there be tests "in hospitals, laboratories - whatever their status" and also wants to "rely on communities", "set up teams mobile, drive-tests, proceed from pharmacies, voluntary pharmacies ".
As for the isolation of people tested positive for the new coronavirus, Olivier Véran says that "all possibilities are being studied, we exclude nothing", including a possible requisition of hotels.
"For the moment, what I see is distrust, doubt and public speaking has been so discredited on the masks, on the tests, that concrete data is needed," said Mr. Faure. .
Yves Veyrier, secretary general of FO, also asked for "clarification on the tests" on BFM on Tuesday.
"We do, approximately, today, 150,000 tests and beyond per week, we are going towards 200,000 tests per week", revealed Mr. Véran, who also revealed that "60 million masks "had arrived from China since April 8.
burs-pgr / rh / swi
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