Europe at the mercy of the coronavirus – Summit with France and Germany locked up



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It was considered necessary to increase measures to limit the spread of the coronavirus, since the second coronavirus is affecting Europe, both at the European Commission level and at the state level.

According to the European Commission, the new package aims to better understand the spread of the virus and the effectiveness of its treatment. The objective will be to strengthen specific tests, detect contacts and improve vaccination campaigns.

“Although Member States are better prepared and more coordinated than in the first months of the pandemic, citizens, families and communities across Europe continue to face an unprecedented risk to their health and well-being.”, Says the Commission, who made the decisions a few hours before the teleconference of European leaders, which will take place on the afternoon of October 29 to coordinate actions against Covid-19.

Ursula von der Leyen: The situation is very serious

“We need to strengthen our response to the EU. Today we are launching additional measures to combat the virus.” From increasing access to rapid tests and preparing vaccination campaigns to facilitating safe travel when necessary, “said the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, while urging Member States to work closely together.

“The courageous steps taken now will help save lives and protect livelihoods.” No Member State will emerge safe from this pandemic until all do, “added von der Leyen.

“Increasing rates of COVID-19 infection in Europe are very concerning.” Immediate and decisive action from Europe is needed to protect lives and livelihoods, relieve pressure on health systems and control the spread of the virus. ” said Stella, European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety. Κυριακίδου.

Among other things, the Commission has decided to improve the flow of information to make decisions and updated data on the coronavirus at regional and national level, to create more efficient and faster tests, for whose purchase the Commission will allocate 100 million euros, the total use cross-border contact alert and monitoring applications to help break the chain of transmission, ensure basic supplies for the availability of essential drugs and medical equipment, and support effective vaccination against Covid-19 when the vaccine becomes available.

Macron announced strict measures

A series of measures, much stricter, were announced tonight by the president of France, Emanuel Macron, in an effort to curb the increase in cases and losses by Covid-19.

The French president announced through a sermon the application of the blockade from Friday, October 30 to December 1.

During this period, citizens must remain in their homes and be able to go out if they have an excuse to do so. According to Emanuel Macron, the quarantine will now be similar to the one imposed in spring, when citizens were allowed to go out for medical reasons, for work, to go to school, do the necessary shopping or exercise for an hour a day.

At the same time, schools will remain open, while universities will close, such as cafes, restaurants and stores, except those that sell essential items, such as supermarkets and pharmacies.

“After consulting the experts, I spoke with my European partners and decided that we should go back to closing starting next Friday,” Emanuel Macron said.

As announced by the president of France, state services for the public will remain open, including municipal services, while all those who can work from home must do so. On the other hand, factories, utilities and other economic activities continue to operate, as Emanuel Macron said.

“The health system will not last unless there is an economy that supports it. Nothing is more important than human life.” We could not do anything and accept the immunity of the herd, “said the French president.

“France will never adopt this strategy”, which would mean “classifying patients”, with the elderly being the main victims of this pandemic, stressed Emanuel Macron.

Partial blockade in Germany

German Chancellor Angela Merkel described today as “a very difficult day”, calling people to a “great national effort” tonight, before announcing “partial blockade” measures, in order to “break the second wave” of the coronavirus pandemic and make it possible to celebrate Christmas without great restrictions.

The federal government and the states today agreed to measures to drastically reduce contacts, which will take effect on November 2 and for the rest of the month, and the situation will be reassessed in two weeks.

Restaurants, bars and clubs will close next Monday, while food can be sold in packages. The gyms, swimming pools and beauty salons will remain closed, with the exception of the hairdressers, which will continue to operate.

Schools and nurseries, clinics and physiotherapy centers, as well as retail and wholesale companies, will remain open, with strict hygiene standards. Supermarkets will provide a maximum number of customers who can be in the store at the same time.

As announced today, a maximum of ten people (up to two households) are allowed to meet in public places, while the State asks to avoid “unnecessary trips” abroad, which is why tourists who stay overnight from abroad will be prohibited, except from emergencies.

Events that include entertainment and leisure are canceled, while theaters, cinemas, concert halls, operas and exhibitions, as well as casinos, gambling centers and brothels are closed. Churches and other places of worship will remain open, observing the protection rules already established. Professional sports will remain in operation, however games will be held without spectators.

Extraordinary state aid

According to Der Spiegel magazine, companies with up to 50 employees will receive up to 75% of their turnover in November 2019, while companies will receive emergency assistance from the state for lost revenue. with more employees you will receive a compensation of 70%. In total, the financial aid will reach 10 billion euros, while employers are asked to facilitate teleworking of their employees.

According to the document agreed by the federation and the states, “the situation is once again very serious and we have four difficult winter months ahead”, but “there is hope, if we spend the winter well, to gradually overcome the next pandemic year and recover economically. ” The reason for the decided measures, the document explains, is on the one hand the rapid increase in the number of cases and, on the other hand, the fact that around 75% of the cases remain of unknown origin.

Finally, to monitor compliance, Interior Minister Horst Seehofer suggested an improved surveillance system by politically motivated police, especially in high-risk areas and large cities. At the same time, those arriving in Germany from “dangerous areas” will be monitored equally intensively, and the border zone will also be monitored for those entering the country by road.

Significant increase in cases in Spain

The coronavirus rate in Spain has increased by almost 20,000 patients in a 24-hour period, bringing the total number of Covid-19 cases to 1,136,503.

The death toll from the virus rose 168 to 35,466, according to the data, down from the 267 deaths recorded yesterday, the largest in a 24-hour increase in deaths in the second wave of the pandemic, with the government waiting. declare the declaration of a state of emergency and the imposition of a traffic ban.

Italy: positives outnumber cured

At the same time, today there was a new increase in daily cases of coronavirus in Italy, since 205 people lost their lives in the last 24 hours, while the new cases reached 24,991, a figure that is the highest since the beginning of the pandemic.

In total, there are 1,536 patients in the ICUs of Italian hospitals, although it is characteristic that at this time in Italy there are 276,457 positives for the virus, while 275,404 are treated.

The mask is mandatory outdoors in Portugal.

The use of the mask on the street and outdoors in Portugal is mandatory from today, in a new attempt by the authorities to curb the epidemic of the new coronavirus, while the country records a record number of cases daily.

The use of the mask has become mandatory outdoors throughout the country, but not for children under 10 years of age, nor for members of the same family when they walk alone on public roads.

Portugal today set a new record for daily coronavirus infections with 3,960 confirmed cases in 24 hours.

More than 10,000 dead in Turkey

At a time when Europe is resolutely tackling the second wave of the coronavirus and imposing new austerity measures, Turkey sees the death toll from the pandemic surpass the 10,000 mark.

The epidemic has claimed the lives of a total of 10,027 people out of the 368,513 cases reported in the country, according to the latest report published by the Minister of Health, Fahrettin Koca. “The epicenter of the virus is in Istanbul,” Fahrettin Koca said, adding that “four out of 10 people who have tested positive for the virus across the country are in this city.” “If we cannot control the pandemic in Istanbul, the situation will spiral out of control,” he added.

The Turkish Health Minister, however, did not announce concrete measures, but limited himself to asking his fellow citizens to reduce “their travel and contacts” by 30% and encourage employers to implement teleworking.

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