German Chancellor Angela Merkel has expressed concern over the rising rate of infections and has announced the country might face a lockdown extension between 8-10 weeks i.e. for another two months, until the end of March, reported BILD.
This might even be increased into the Easter period should the numbers not stabilise.
Shops closed, restaurants closed, schools closed – and little hope of improvement: politicians plan to continue the lockdown extension that began in November, for many more weeks, writes Merkur.de.
“If we do not manage to stop this British virus, then we will have a 10-fold incidence by Easter,” she said in an internal meeting of the working group inside the Union faction, as participants BILD report. She warned of a dramatic explosion in the number of infections caused by the corona virus mutated in Great Britain.
Merkel’s concern is that the British mutation is no more deadly than the virus that dominates the rest of Europe, but it is much more contagious, READ MORE ON WHAT WE WROTE ABOUT IT HERE>>. Eventually, this would lead to significantly more infections and more crowded clinics.
Bild however reported that, the Federal Chancellor, like Bavaria’s Prime Minister Markus Söder stressed several times that there was no guarantee that the measures would be relaxed at the end of January – the aim of the measures is to reduce the incidence (new infections per 100,000 inhabitants in seven days) below 50.
Only then will the health authorities be able to trace the contacts of infected people again, so the reason for this value.
So far, the corona measures, which began with the “lockdown light” on November 2nd and were extended to a tough lockdown in mid-December, had only been extended until January 31st, we wrote about it here>>.
Federal Minister of Health Jens Spahn (40, CDU) wants to prevent the virus mutations from spreading in Germany.
Merkel’s drastic conclusion in the one-hour video conference on Tuesday morning: “We still need eight to ten weeks of tough action.” Relaxation is only possible towards Easter, when the weather will be warmer.
Merkel has already prepared the citizens for the difficult weeks.
Read more information on German Laws and legislation here: Legal News and Guides – Germany
The measures, which have now been extended and, in some cases, tightened by the federal and state governments, are drastic, severe restrictions, but also “absolutely necessary,” she said.
Experts see things differently: virologist Alexander Kekulé, for example, criticized a “concrete” policy on Monday night and even warned of blocking it “until June or July”.
However, the federal government has not yet set a specific timetable for ending the restrictions. The chancellor and the prime minister want to re-evaluate the current evolution of the pandemic on January 25. Resolutions on further action should be taken on 1st February reported Ziarul Romanesc.
Source: Afronews.de, Bild.de, Ziarulromanesc.de, Merkur.de