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Prime Minister and Chancellor Merkel discuss Corona’s situation in the afternoon. According to media reports, the federal government is pushing for the requirement for masks and a curfew to be expanded for regions particularly affected by Corona.
The federal and state crown summit has not even started, but the first draft of the Chancellery has already been leaked for consultation with the Prime Minister. According to information from various news agencies, Chancellor Angela Merkel wants to propose new restrictions for regions with high numbers of corona infections at the meeting.
According to the dpa news agency, the federal government is calling for an expanded mask requirement. It should be applied where people come together closer and closer. In addition, there are apparently plans to limit the number of participants at parties and private events and to introduce a curfew in the restaurant sector. These measures should be applied if 35 new infections are registered per 100,000 inhabitants in a week.
If the so-called seven-day incidence exceeds 50, the countries, according to the AFP news agency, “would consistently take increasingly stringent local restrictive measures.” This could also include contact restrictions in public spaces, the agency cited.
Dispute over the accommodation ban
The draft apparently does not provide for a nationwide regulation on the controversial accommodation ban. Citizens are only “urgently” urged to avoid unnecessary travel outside of Corona’s risk areas and hotspots. Above all, travel restrictions in some federal states had sparked heated discussions in the run-up to the federal-state meeting.
Federal states such as Bavaria and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania continue to insist on strict rules and do not want to lift the ban. Berlin, for example, resists this. Ruling Mayor Michael Müller (SPD) said the travel restrictions made no sense and only created confusion. North Rhine-Westphalia Prime Minister Armin Laschet (CDU) urged the ARD morning magazine “pragmatic solutions”. The accommodation ban is incomprehensible and undermines acceptance among the population.
“Most important summit in months”
City Council Chairman Burkhard Jung described today’s Corona summit as “the most important in months.” “The next few weeks will decide whether we can keep the corona pandemic under control,” he told the “Passauer neue Presse.”
Jung is one of those calling for a uniform approach at the national level. The mayor of Leipzig advocates a step-by-step plan, the so-called crown traffic light. “That means: if the limit of 35 or 50 infections per 100,000 inhabitants is exceeded, all countries should take the same measures.” However, it should still be possible to differentiate regionally according to the infection rate. According to his own statement, the accommodation ban does not convince Jung. Until now, overnight stays in hotels have not posed any special risk in Germany.
“More masks and tests, fewer hosting bans”
Economic researchers are also skeptical of the ban issued by some federal states. The president of the Munich Ifo Institute, Clemens Fuest, called for moderate restrictions on the crown. “I would expect from politics that more protective measures are taken that allow economic and social life instead of preventing it,” the economist told “Handelsblatt.” “So more mask requirements and more tests and fewer hosting bans.”
The president of the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW), Marcel Fratzscher, made a similar statement in the newspaper. Protecting health and the economy requires “a high level of trust from the vast majority of people.” That requires rules that are understandable and therefore also uniform to some extent.
Greens ask for clear guidelines
The opposition criticized Merkel’s previous crisis management. Green parliamentary group leader Katrin Göring-Eckardt told the “Rheinische Post” that it was total negligence that the federal government “has not yet coordinated any clear national guidelines and understandable concepts.” Leader of the Left Party, Katja Kipping, called ARD morning magazine, to allow a regular social life, in addition to specific measures to contain the pandemic. He insisted on investing in digitization, air filters, and faster testing.
The former will broadcast a special on the results of the Corona summit the night after deliberations end. You can also follow the federal and state press conference live on tagesschau.de. The exact time has not yet been determined.
