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reThe federal government wants to tighten contact restrictions due to the high level of corona infection numbers.
According to a draft motion for a resolution for Chancellor Angela Merkel’s (CDU) videoconference with the prime minister of the federal states on Sunday evening, available to the German Press Agency on Sunday evening, the public should only be with members of your own household and a maximum of two people. allow yourself another home. Private celebrations should initially be avoided entirely until Christmas.
Children and youth should be encouraged to meet only with a faithful friend in their spare time. Private gatherings with friends and acquaintances should generally only be limited to a permanent home. In the future, you should go straight home to quarantine with every cold symptom, especially a cough and a runny nose.
Merkel justified the tightening according to information from the news agency in the CDU presidium with reference to a continuous high number of new corona infections. Stabilization has been achieved thanks to current restrictions. But this is not enough. “The numbers are stabilizing a bit. But too slow, “said the chancellor. Now it is necessary to further reduce contacts in the private sector, Merkel said. The federal government depends on the participation of the population.
The Chancellor also drew attention to different developments in individual cities. There is no reduction in the number of infections in Berlin, unlike in Hamburg or Bremen. There you have to take measurements for the hotspots.
Cheaper FFP2 masks for risk groups
For the provisional review of the partial closure in November planned by the Chancellor and the Prime Minister of the federal states at 2 pm, a tightening of the contact restrictions had already been discussed, a kind of “label” with instructions on how to behave, as well as other measures to protect risk groups.
In accordance with the federal government’s will to protect itself against the coronavirus, people at particular risk, such as the elderly and the infirm, should receive discounted FFP2 masks starting in December. To reduce the risk of contagion, the federal government will allow this population group to sell 15 of these masks for a small personal contribution. Mathematically, this results in one mask per winter week, costs are borne by the federal government.
The biggest point of contention could be new measures in the school sector.
According to information from the German Press Agency, several countries asked in a preliminary meeting with the Foreign Ministry on Sunday to wait another week for the development of the corona infection figures, which have recently stalled at a high level, before making decisions. powerful. First, the “Spiegel” reported on the date.
According to the proposed draft resolution, the use of mouth and nose protection will be mandatory for students of all ages and for teachers on school premises and during classes. Without exception, there should also be fixed groups of students, reducing the size of the groups in the classrooms by half compared to normal operations.
Schools problem
Bavarian Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) demanded stricter and more uniform rules for schools on Sunday at “Bild live”. “I advocate that we introduce mandatory masks everywhere.” Anyone who wants to keep school open must wear masks, even in elementary school. North Rhine-Westphalia Prime Minister Armin Laschet (CDU) also said in “Bild live” on the question of whether schools could remain open in general in December: “That cannot be answered yet, that also depends on the subsequent infection process “.
In principle, there was agreement that schools should remain open for face-to-face teaching, based on preliminary consultations. However, most countries currently do not want to change regulations. The Foreign Ministry, for its part, wanted to talk about changes, for example in the distance rules applicable in schools, the size of the group or the introduction of models of change in the classroom. Here the fronts have hardened, it was heard.
In a preliminary meeting between the heads of the state chancellery and the head of the Federal Chancellery, Helge Braun (CDU), he pointed out that around 500,000 infections had been registered in Germany in the first corona wave from February to the end of October, he learned the German press. -Agency. Now it is expected that another 500,000 cases will be added in November, and this number will double in a month.
This is dramatic, even if the partial lockdown managed to prevent an exponential increase in the number of infections currently, it was noted. If it remains at such a high level of 20,000 new cases every day, this cannot be accepted.
The meeting on Monday, two weeks after the November contact restrictions came into effect, had been scheduled from the beginning to take stock. No major decisions were originally planned. The federal government said in advance that there could not yet be a relaxation.
Merkel had already put citizens in the mood for difficult months on Saturday. “The winter ahead will demand a lot from all of us,” said the Chancellor in her video podcast. “The virus will rule our lives for a long time. That also means that we cannot be without worries. ” Leisure facilities and restaurants are currently closed and hotels cannot accommodate tourists.
Long virus skating marks: “Wave not broken yet”
Health Minister Jens Spahn (CDU) told a virtual meeting of the Bavarian Youth Union with a view to the crown numbers, “at least a stabilization is observed.” However, after that, the common goal should be to reduce the numbers. “This virus has an incredibly long slip mark.” Even with very strong restrictions, it takes a long time for the numbers to fall again.
Söder told the Junge Union that “there will be no relief under any circumstances, that doesn’t make any sense” until the end of November. With a view to the federal-state consultations, he added: “If it should be extended, it is possible, we will see. If more needs to be done, that is then decided. “Saarland head of government Tobias Hans (CDU) told Germany’s publishing network:” We have to critically examine whether the measures we have taken so far are sufficient to control infection, or if we need to improve or even perfect. “
Economy Minister Peter Altmaier (CDU) told “Bild am Sonntag” that despite all efforts, no change had yet been achieved. You see little scope to open restaurants and cinemas. “We will have to live with considerable precautions and restrictions for at least the next four to five months.” Baden-Württemberg Prime Minister Winfried Kretschmann (Greens) told the “Augsburger Allgemeine” that only when the wave of infections has subsided “and resoundingly, can we talk about how we do Christmas?”
School lessons in restaurants?
Altmaier suggested school lessons in closed restaurants and hotels to better comply with the distance rules. “In classrooms it is often difficult to maintain sufficient distance,” he told “Bild am Sonntag.”
Olaf Köller, a Kiel-based educational psychologist and researcher, promoted digital teaching to older students from home. Distance education programs should be established in the long term until the end of March and not just until Christmas, said Köller, who contributed to several statements by the Leopoldina National Academy of Sciences on the corona pandemic.
SPD health expert Karl Lauterbach spoke in favor of keeping schools open in any event, but cautioned against continuing school operations. He told the newspapers of the Funke media group: “We are entering a situation where school operations are becoming a high risk for children, teachers, parents and grandparents.”
He advised that school classes should be divided and taught “in winter all the time with a mask.” Children between the ages of 10 and 19 are just as contagious as adults.
