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“We are obliged to act and we are acting now”
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Angela Merkel announces the hard lockdown
Retail, with the exception of stores for daily necessities, must close. Contacts in schools and nurseries should also be significantly restricted. Watch the press conference with the Chancellor after the Corona summit here.
The decision was made in record time: the federal and state governments agreed to sharp cuts in public life as of December 16. This applies to retail as well as schools, daycare, and New Year’s Eve.
reIn view of the spread of the corona pandemic, public life in Germany will be drastically closed as of December 16. Retail, with the exception of stores for daily necessities, must close. Contacts in schools and nurseries should also be significantly restricted. Schools are “basically closed,” Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) said after consultations with the prime minister on Sunday.
“We are obliged to act and we are acting now,” Merkel said. The measures taken in November would not have been enough, for a few days there has been an exponential growth of new infections and the number of deaths is increasing. There is an urgent need to act to avoid overloading the health system. The goal should be to make contact tracing possible again.
Private contact restrictions remain in effect, so meetings are limited to five people and two households. There are only exceptions for Christmas. You can then invite four more people “from the closest family circle.” Whenever possible, a “protection week” with reduced contacts should be inserted prior to visits.
Children are to be cared for at home “whenever possible” until January 10th. The federal states themselves decide whether schools are “closed in principle” or whether compulsory attendance is suspended. As in the spring, there should be emergency care and schools should be able to make exceptions for final classes. More details can be found in the decision of the federal-state conference.
Merkel announced “ample economic aid”. Specifically, bridge aid III, which will be applied from January, consists of increasing the maximum amount from 200,000 to 500,000 euros. The maximum grant is intended for companies that are directly and indirectly affected by the Corona closures. Vice Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) expected a spending of “just over eleven billion euros in one month.”
The sale of food and beverages outside the home is allowed, but consumption is prohibited on site to avoid the gathering of people in front of the facilities as in recent days (“hot wine jumps”).
Söder: Agreement in record time
Bavarian Prime Minister Markus Söder stressed the unusually short time in which the federal government and the states had reached an agreement. The video conference only lasted about 45 minutes.
He warned that Germany could become Europe’s problem child. “It’s five minutes to twelve,” said the CSU chief. In some cases there is already a triage in Germany, even if so far it has been discussed which patient is being transferred and who is being treated directly. “Bergamo is closer than you think,” Söder warned.
Night curfew in Bavaria
In Bavaria, given the contagious situation, all schools and nurseries would be shot as of Wednesday. Additionally, strict night-out restrictions apply for the entire Free State. Bavaria had passed the value of 200 new infections per 100,000 inhabitants in seven days over the weekend.
The regulation of the federal states will apply until January 10. It cannot be said at this point how things will go at the beginning of the year, Merkel said. He especially thanked the people who work in the hospitals. “It will be a very difficult Christmas for them.”
