Government authorities are placing Paris on a new high-level COVID-19 alert which will demand that bars be shut for two weeks from Tuesday, October 6. Restaurants will also be mandated to increase safety and health measures or risk being closed. The announcement was made by Prime Minister Jean Castex. The prime minister stated that Paris, the capital city of France, has exceeded all three criteria for going into maximum alert.
The office of the Prime Minister announced that the COVID-19 stats in Paris showed no progress since the release of the three benchmarks that would mandate placing a region on maximum COVID-19 alert. The benchmarks were released last week and the capital city has exceeded all three without any form of progress – mandating the move to close down bars, the PM said.
Europe is experiencing a second bout of COVID-19 after the easing of lockdown protocols in different countries. Irish medical experts are reportedly calling for another total lockdown in the country and a document that reportedly surfaced shows that there might be a more severe traffic light system in England to reduce congestion.
“Paris and three regions surrounding it will be placed on high alert for two weeks,” the PM’s office. “The decision is crucial in the fight against coronavirus.”
The PM also advised that employers should make provisions for their employees to work remotely instead of having congested workplaces. Castex also stated that no lecture hall should have students that are more than 50% of its capacity. The restrictions announced by the Prime Minister will begin on Tuesday.
The criteria for placing a city or region on maximum alert is having over 100 infected elderlies out of every 100,000 and 250 infected patients out of every 100,000 of the rest of the population. France has 12,565 new active cases of COVID-19 and 893 infected patients are being monitored in ICU’s all over the country as reported on Sunday.
Last week, bars and restaurants were closed in Marseille for two weeks, leading to a lot of protests and lawsuits. Restaurants in Marseille will be allowed to open but must follow strict safety and health measures while bars will remain closed.
In the same vein, Irish medical experts are allegedly calling for the Irish government to enforce a nationwide lockdown for a month. If implemented, the lockdown will be the second to be enforced in the country since the beginning of the pandemic. According to two government officials, the Irish cabinet will discuss the possibility of a second nationwide lockdown on Monday. The sources stated that the government might not agree to a second lockdown as a result of the effects one would have on the economy.
The Prime Minister of Ireland, Micheal Martin, and the leaders of the coalition parties will have a meeting with the chief medical personnel on Monday before the cabinet’s discussion to evaluate the recommendations of the medical experts.
Some leaked documents that surfaced in England also reveal that there are plans for the implementation of a three-level lockdown which will lead to strict restrictions such as the closing of pubs and a prohibition of social gatherings outside of home gatherings.
Source: theguardian.com
