France: Prime Minister prepares long-term rules against Covid-19
Prime Minister Jean Castex took stock of the Covid-19 epidemic on Thursday, November 12.
Ludovic Marin / Pool via REUTERS
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French Prime Minister Jean Castex details this Saturday, November 14 the rules put in place in the country to fight against the Covid-19 epidemic, until the arrival of an effective vaccine.
The restrictions could last until the summer.
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We will have to "
live with the virus over the long term
": French Prime Minister
Jean Castex is
working on "
rules
" for the country until the arrival of a vaccine against the new coronavirus, he told the French daily
Le Monde
this Saturday.
No reopening for bars and restaurants
"
As long as we do not have a vaccine, we must give perspectives on the rules of the game,
" said Jean Castex, who presented the strategy on Thursday until the end of 2020 but is also working on the period beyond, possibly until summer.
“
One thing is certain: festive and family gatherings in party rooms will not be able to resume for a long time.
Likewise, the bars and restaurants which are also part of the places of strong contamination will not be able to reopen on December 1, unlike toy stores, for example,
”he explains.
On Thursday November 12, the Prime Minister deemed it possible, if the slight downward trend in coronavirus cases is confirmed, to take
relief measures
as of December 1 "s
very limited to shops
", and on the basis of '' a reinforced protocol.
In a tweet on Saturday, French President Emmanuel Macron estimated that "
our fight against the epidemic is collective and the coming days will be decisive
".
The Head of State recalls in this message the gestures to "
save lives
", "
in class, at the office, at home
".
In the coming months, "
teleworking will have to continue, on the basis of a balance to be found in companies to avoid all or nothing,
" Jean Castex added to
Le Monde
newspaper
.
Caution regarding the prospect of a vaccine
On Monday, the American laboratories Pfizer and German BioNTech affirmed that their
vaccine candidate
was "
90
%
effective
" against Covid-19, according to the large-scale phase 3 trial underway, the last step before an application for approval.
But the French government remains on its guard.
“
The prospect of a vaccine is approaching.
There is the Pfizer project, but also many others in the testing phase.
You have to prepare while remaining cautious,
”Judge Jean Castex, who claims to have“
already secured the orders
”.
"
My fear is that the French are not getting enough vaccinations,
" he said.
►Also read:
Vaccine against the Covid: Pfizer's announcement raises hope but caution is in order
According to an Ipsos poll published in September, France is among the countries where the intention to use the vaccine is the lowest.
They would thus be only 59% to be vaccinated against Covid-19 in France, against 74% at the global level.
According to the latest figures published by Public Health France on Friday, the number of patients with Covid-19 in intensive care has stabilized in France, slightly below 4,900.
The death toll in that country has reached a total of 43,892 since the start of the pandemic.
Since the start of the week, the daily number of hospital deaths has fluctuated between just over 300 and just under 500.
► Restaurateurs and cafetiers are preparing an appeal against their imposed closure
Restaurateurs and cafetiers intend to challenge the government's decision to close their establishments as part of the reconfinement in court, the Umih, the main hospitality trades union, announced on Saturday.
"
The national Umih (Union des professions des industries de l'hôtellerie) has appealed against the decree of October 29, 2020 which closes 'type N' restaurants and drinking places while authorizing collective catering
", she indicated, justifying this recourse by "
the breach of the principle of equality
".
She plans to "
finalize
" this appeal "
before November 20
".
"
The administrative closure of our restaurants and bars is based on health reasons, but no figures can justify that the cases of contamination were more numerous in these establishments (...) than in collective catering
", estimates the syndicate
He underlines that its members "
apply, since their first reopening in June 2020, the same strict health protocols applied by collective catering
" and that "
at the request of the profession, these protocols were even reinforced in September 2020
".
Two out of three establishments fear permanent closure
“
Why could collective restaurants that accommodate more people than our 20, 30-seat restaurants practice a normal activity
?
", Asked the Umih, reached by telephone by AFP, denouncing a"
distortion of competition compared to another form of restoration
".
By this action, she hopes to put "
pressure on the government
" and show that "
the sector will not give up to succeed in reopening
".
The "
goal is not to close collective catering
", indicated the organization, recalling that according to a study carried out among its members and published this week, "
two establishments in three fear to close definitively by the end of the year due to this second confinement
”.
(With AFP)
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France
Coronavirus
Jean Castex
Emmanuel Macron