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“My goal is to prepare France for a possible second wave, preserving our daily life, our economic and social life,” new Prime Minister Jean Castex told RTL.
“However, we will not issue a quarantine as the last fight, because we learned that … the economic and human consequences of a complete closure are devastating,” he said.
Instead, any suspension of the companies or orders not to leave home will be “objective” for specific areas, the prime minister said.
“The coronavirus is still here,” Castex warned, adding that he would go to French Guiana in South America on Sunday, where coronavirus infections were on the rise.
On Tuesday, officials in French territory reported 124 new cases of infection, bringing the total number of COVID-19 cases to almost 5.2 thousand. The French government has sent dozens of health workers to help hospitals in the area.
Castex was named by President Emmanuel Macron last week to head a new government tasked with halting the country’s recovery from the worst economic and health crisis since World War II.
Billions of euros in investment have been promised, measures to save jobs, and the economy is forecast to shrink by about 10 percent this year.
“We will protect people, but above all we will invest in ecological transformation, in the recovery of our country,” said Castex.
He also confirmed that he had proposed a further € 1 billion in hospital wages and financial incentives during negotiations with unions this week, and that the package now totals € 7.5 billion. euros
But union leaders say it would only raise the salaries of nurses, technicians and others on the coronavir front to around € 180 a month. This is much less than the required 300 euros.
The COVID-19 outbreak in France has killed nearly 30,000 people since January. persons.
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