EPIDEMIC: Decisions on an earlier curfew are still awaited for Bouches-du-Rhône, Vaucluse, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence and Yonne to try and slow down the advance of the coronavirus
The government wishes to advance the curfew in “eight” new departments, Prime Minister Jean Castex announced on Saturday, defending “difficult but necessary measures” in the face of the “disputes” they arouse, especially in Marseille. He did not specify which departments were concerned out of the ten previously mentioned.
According to information collected from the prefectures, the curfew will be brought forward to 6 pm Sunday in these eight departments: Bas-Rhin, Haut-Rhin, Allier, Cher and Côte d’Or, Bouches-du-Rhône, Vaucluse and Alpes- of-Haute-Provence. Haute-Savoie and Yonne keep the 8-hour schedule.
Speed up the vaccination process
In Marseille, ignoring political divisions, the town hall, on the left, and the region, on the right, denounced with one voice the progress of the curfew. “In reality, we apply in Marseille the same criteria that we apply elsewhere. Everyone is aware that the epidemic is not weakening or that, on the contrary, it is increasing differently in certain areas of the territory. This is the reason why, for a few days now, we have wanted an anticipated effect of the start time of the curfew. So this will be the case in eight additional departments, ”said Jean Castex during a trip to Tarbes.
Jean Castex also defended once again the government’s vaccination strategy, criticized for its slowness. “The objective is to go quickly” but also “to do it in absolutely irreproachable conditions of safety”, he said, assuring to have noted that the “rate of adhesion” to the vaccination “increases”, while France is one of the most sceptical countries about the coronavirus Covid-19 vaccines.
