One of the most important sentences in the resolution of the recent meeting of the Prime Ministers with Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz is the last.

That was already clear before the meeting began on Tuesday at 4 p.m.

One will be on the "X.

January 2022 will meet again to discuss the situation, "said the draft decision.

The fact that this "X" is aimed at the first half of January, rather the first third, was considered certain in negotiating circles.

Already on Monday it was heard from the Union that much should obviously not be decided.

So you want to meet again soon.

Eckart Lohse

Head of the parliamentary editorial office in Berlin.

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In terms of content, the resolutions of the Prime Minister's Conference (MPK) aim primarily at two innovations.

Even vaccinated and convalescent people have to limit their private contacts and major events, such as football games, are initially taking place again without an audience.

If you compare these measures with the first opinion of the German government's Covid Expert Council from Sunday evening, the disproportion is obvious.

The number of those infected with the Omikron variant doubles every two to four days, due to the many diseases to be expected, but at least quarantine cases, the health system and the so-called critical infrastructure such as the police, fire brigade, electricity or water supply are endangered in their function .

Scholz and the quiet little steps

Even before the start of the meeting on Tuesday, external pressure was enormously increased on politicians to do more than what had been planned so far. The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) started with a tightened risk assessment because of the Omikron variant. Even for people who have been vaccinated twice or have recovered, the risk of being infected with the corona virus is classified as "high". For those who have not been vaccinated, it remains at the “very high” level, announced the RKI. A “moderate” risk exists only for those who have already received a booster vaccination. For the population as a whole, the institute rates the risk as “very high”. The Standing Vaccination Commission (Stiko) seconded the RKI and recommended faster boosting.Instead of the previous six, it should only take three months after the complete vaccination or an overcoming infection to refresh.

If these alarm signals for vaccination were still covered by the draft of the MPK, which recommended a booster vaccination "as soon as possible", this did not apply to the next gong strike, with which the RKI prepared the MPK meeting. From a “professional point of view”, the immediate closure of restaurants and the extension of the Christmas holidays for daycare centers and schools are required. None of this was in the draft resolution. Restaurant closings are a good example of the difficult situation the Federal Chancellor finds himself in. As long as the epidemic situation of national scope existed as the legal basis for extensive restrictions to contain the virus, nationwide closings of restaurants were possible.Since the majority of the traffic light coalition and against the express will of the Union did not prolong the epidemic situation, the situation has changed. 

Hamburg is moving forward and is already imposing measures

It is true that the federal states can use the federal state opening clause to order restaurants to be closed.

In Union circles, however, it is often pointed out that such measures only really worked and met with broader acceptance if they were taken for the entire federal territory.

Where this is argued, the criticism of Scholz is not far.

While his predecessor Merkel, hooked up with the Bavarian Prime Minister Markus Söder, for over a year and a half of the fight against the pandemic always pushed for a uniform nationwide approach, Scholz is, from the point of view of some Union people, quietly taking small steps.

Finding a consensus in the traffic light coalition is more difficult than in the grand coalition. Merkel was not able to enforce some of her far-reaching resolutions to restrict public and private life in the fight against the virus. But it failed mainly because of the resistance of individual countries. The social democratic coalition partner was usually not the biggest problem. Scholz, on the other hand, has to stick together partners who have taken very different positions in dealing with the pandemic over the past two years. While the Greens were predominantly in the "caution team" on the side of Merkel and Söders, the FDP often questioned strict measures.It is symptomatic that the FDP in particular expressed its first open resistance to the general compulsory vaccination, which Scholz has supported for some time - from Bundestag Vice President Wolfgang Kubicki. The topic was left out entirely in the draft resolution for the MPK meeting.

Not only RKI and Stiko put the participants of the federal-state meeting under pressure with their statements.

Some countries advanced.

Bavaria's Prime Minister Söder announced the return to compulsory testing for vaccinated students.

Scholz's successor and party friend, the First Mayor of Hamburg Peter Tschentscher, became clearer.

In the Hanseatic city, the contact restrictions also apply to those who have been vaccinated and recovered at private meetings for the Christmas season.

Baden-Württemberg's Prime Minister Winfried Kretschmann (Greens) called for the reintroduction of the epidemic emergency of national importance.