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The second wave of the coronavirus has forced countries in Europe to implement a new series of anti-epidemic measures. The governments of France and Italy have taken the most drastic measures in recent hours.
The National Assembly, the lower house of the French parliament, approved a first reading bill tonight to extend the state of emergency in the country due to the coronavirus until February 16, reported AFP and TASS. The measure was supported by 71 deputies with 35 against.
The bill will be voted on by the Senate in Paris on Wednesday and its final approval by the National Assembly will likely be early next month.
The state of emergency in France was restored by decree a week ago. However, for the measure to last for more than a month, it must be covered by law, says AFP.
The project provides opportunities to extend the restrictions until April 1. This period covers regional and local elections in France, if not postponed, a sensitive issue in the country, AFP notes.
Yesterday, the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the country exceeded one million. France is only the seventh country in the world to cross this threshold and the second in the European Union after Spain.
Italy closes theaters, cinemas and gyms,
and the restaurants and bars will be open until 6 pm
Today, the Prime Minister of Italy, Giuseppe Conte, ordered the introduction of additional restrictions in the country to control the spread of the new coronavirus, ANSA reported, cited by world agencies.
From October 26 to November 24, sports pavilions, public swimming pools, game rooms, cinemas, theaters and spas close their doors in the country.
Furthermore, all catering establishments – bars, restaurants and cafes will be open until 18:00. The government wants 2,000 million euros, which it plans to pay as compensation to the affected establishments.
Now four people can sit at a table, instead of six, as has been the case so far. Exceptions will be made when visitors are family members living together. After 6 p.m., restaurants can only deliver food to households. This restriction does not apply to roadside restaurants.
Conte also advised minimizing citizen movements.
So far, no curfew has been introduced across the country, but it already operates in several areas, including the capital Lazio. It is forbidden to go out after 11 at night, unless it is urgent.
Measures such as wearing a mask everywhere, measuring body temperature, self-isolation in case of infection or contact with an infected person remain unchanged. For now, schools remain open, although in many upper grades, education is moving online. Distance learning has been introduced in universities.
In Italy, since the beginning of October, there have been maximum daily increases every day for those who tested positive for Covid-19. On October 23, this figure exceeded 19,000 Since the start of the pandemic, the number of people infected by the new coronavirus exceeds half a million, of which more than 250,000 have been cured and more than 37,000 have died from complications of the infection.
