Paris (AFP)
The government is preparing to endorse the two-month extension of the state of health emergency against the Covid-19 on Saturday, but it remains under pressure to clarify the concrete modalities of the deconfinement, in particular the puzzle of reopening schools and the controversy over the sale of masks.
After a May 1 confined due to the coronavirus, the Council of Ministers is considering the bill extending the health emergency from May 24. Its examination in the Senate is scheduled for Monday, before it is transmitted to the National Assembly for final adoption in the week.
The coronavirus has killed 24,594 people in France since March 1, including 218 in the past 24 hours. The tension in the intensive care unit has eased a little further with 141 fewer people, argued the Director General of Health, Jérôme Salomon.
But there is still a lot of vagueness around the conditions of the deconfinement planned for May 11: the provisional map classifying the departments in green, red or orange according to the state of the epidemic and of the resuscitation services was corrected for the first time at because of counting errors which caused the discontent of the local elected officials.
- "progressive" return -
Another concern is the reopening of schools. The "majority of nursery and primary schools" will be on May 11, said Jean-Michel Blanquer at Le Figaro, with a maximum of 15 children per class. But some city officials do not want to hear about it.
The mayor of Nantes Johanna Rolland (PS) warned that it would be "not possible" for all the children to return to school on May 11 and that the start of the school year could only be "progressive".
Several mayors of Seine-Saint-Denis have also expressed their intention not to reopen their schools, worried about their possible criminal responsibility in the event of contamination of children, teachers or staff.
In Paris, the reopening of schools will be reserved, at least initially, "to a priority audience", that is to say children of certain professions and dropouts, told AFP the deputy of the town hall in charge of education.
To welcome students, schools will have to comply with a very strict health protocol, the main lines of which were revealed on Thursday: repeated hand washing, prohibited games, disinfection of equipment, marked traffic flow on the ground ... a puzzle for small towns.
Another source of tension in anticipation of May 11: the sale of masks which will be mandatory in public transport.
Ten days after the deconfinement, the government decided to cap the sale price of surgical masks at 95 cents per unit, but not that of fabric masks, due to the variety of models and their provenance.
The objective is "that an abundant supply of washable and reusable masks with guaranteed filtration be made available to the public at a cost of the order of 20 to 30 euro cents per use," the ministry said. Economy in a press release.
In mass retail, single-use masks will be sold from May 4 "at cost price" and fabric masks "between two and three euros", assured on Franceinfo Jacques Creyssel, general delegate of the Federation of Commerce and of the Distribution (FCD), defending itself from having constituted "hidden stocks".
- 2 billion hole -
Because faced with the large number of masks advertised for sale by retailers, the orders of the health professions, which are still having trouble obtaining them, expressed their "dismay", critics relayed by part of the political class, notably the leader of the Insoumis, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, and that of the PS Olivier Faure.
Gironde Senator Nathalie Delattre (Radical Movement) asked for the creation of a commission of inquiry on the subject.
On the economic level, the health crisis continues its ravages: the SNCF suffered a shortfall of two billion euros due to the virus, announced its CEO Jean-Pierre Farandou, considering a state aid plan and job cuts.
Economic difficulties that weigh in favor of deconfinement even if the carers worry about the possibility of a second wave: "everyone is a little concerned, the hospital held out the first time but if we were to have a second wave we are dead, "warned on Europe 1 Philippe-Gabriel Steg, cardiologist at Bichat hospital.
And for the first time in France, a cat has tested positive for the coronavirus, causing the Alfort Veterinary School to recommend that sick people distance themselves from their pets.
© 2020 AFP