Prime Minister's Conference: Länder insist on uniform nationwide Corona

The Prime Ministers still want a nationwide uniform legal framework to secure corona protective measures.

At their annual meeting in Königswinter, North Rhine-Westphalia, they made a corresponding decision on Friday, as announced by the Düsseldorf State Chancellery.

It is of the utmost importance to the Prime Ministers that the countries are given the opportunity for a limited period of time to continue to take necessary and appropriate measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19, even after the determination of the epidemic situation of national scope has come to an end ".

Low-threshold measures could and should prevent a renewed increase in the number of infections, according to the decision of the Conference of Prime Ministers (MPK).

Otherwise, a massive increase in infection measures could "make significantly more stringent measures necessary" again.

The protective measures that the country leaders consider necessary beyond autumn and winter include the so-called 3G rule, masks, distance, ventilation.

"3G" stands for those who have been vaccinated, those who have recovered and who have been tested.

After the unanimous vote, Bavaria’s Prime Minister Markus Söder sees the SPD, Greens and FDP as responsible.

“Unfortunately, Corona is coming back with great force.

The new traffic light majority must not duck, "said the CSU chairman on Friday after the end of the conference.

“We have to be careful in order to get through autumn and winter.

Without a legal basis from the federal government, the citizens would be defenseless. "

Spahn wants to end the "epidemic situation"

The successes in combating the Corona crisis were "painfully" achieved with some tough restrictions, said the deputy chairman of the Prime Minister's Conference, Michael Müller (SPD). You shouldn't take any chances now with a view to autumn and winter. "We need a national legal framework," said Berlin's outgoing mayor in Königswinter. Either the existing regulation must be extended or an interim solution created. The new Bundestag, which will be constituted next Tuesday, and the still-federal government have a duty.

Lower Saxony's Prime Minister Stephan Weil (SPD) also insists on a nationwide uniform legal framework for the implementation of corona protective measures. "We urgently need a solid federal legal basis for anti-corona measures in the future," said Weil. From his point of view, it makes sense for the Bundestag to initially update the determination of an “epidemic situation of national scope”. On this basis, the state governments currently have “a flexible system that is appropriate to the respective situation for the necessary protection against infection”. Sooner or later, higher corona occupancy numbers in the intensive care units can be expected again.

If the Bundestag decides against an extension, appropriate regulations in the Infection Protection Act must ensure that all protective measures required on site can also be maintained in autumn and winter. "Then there is a realistic chance of effectively limiting the pandemic in the next few months and seeing it as over after the end of the cold season," said Weil.

Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn (CDU) had spoken out in favor of not continuing the determination of an epidemic situation of national importance beyond November 25th.

This determination is the basis for regulations and central corona measures in Germany.

It is true that the states also have the option of maintaining such measures through resolutions of their state parliaments.

However, several Prime Ministers warned on the fringes of the MPK of a “patchwork quilt” and the associated lack of acceptance.

Sharp criticism of Lukashenko

In addition, the Prime Ministers are calling on the federal government to examine how the falsification of vaccination, recovery and test certificates can be fully punished under criminal law.

This is a problem, said Müller.

According to the results of a survey by the Evangelical Press Service, there have now been at least several hundred cases of fraud with false so-called health certificates nationwide.

Some countries even observe a regular trade in counterfeit vaccination certificates.

According to the Justice Ministers of the federal states, however, there are gaps in criminal law that make it difficult to anticipate such falsifications.

Legal certainty and sanctions are needed here, said Müller.

The Federal Ministry of Justice would be responsible for examining and, if necessary, changing the legal situation.

The prime ministers also deal with the issue of migration and criticized the approach of the Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko as unacceptable. "To put pressure on the European Union to take advantage of the plight of people to give them visas to Belarus in order to bring them across the western border into the European Union is inhuman", said the chairman of the conference of prime ministers, the North Rhine- Westphalian Prime Minister Armin Laschet (CDU). "As countries, we want to adjust to how the increasing numbers are now dealt with in a humane manner and still criticize this unacceptable situation in Europe."

The EU accuses Lukashenko of bringing refugees from crisis regions to the EU's external border in an organized manner.

Lukashenko announced at the end of May that Minsk would no longer prevent migrants from continuing to travel to the EU - in response to tightened Western sanctions against his country.

Since then, reports of attempted illegal border crossings at the EU's external borders with Belarus and at the German-Polish border have increased.