"Forced to act": The federal and state governments decide on a tough lockdown from Wednesday

Sunday 13th December 2020

"Forced to act"
The federal and state governments decide on a tough lockdown from Wednesday

In view of the spreading corona pandemic, public life in Germany will be drastically shut down from Wednesday. The retail trade, with the exception of shops for daily needs, has to close.

The federal and state governments have agreed on a tough lockdown from Wednesday. According to Chancellor Angela Merkel, the partial lockdown that has been in place since the beginning of November "was not enough". The exponential growth of new corona infections could have been stopped for a while, said Merkel after consultations with the prime ministers. But then there was a "sideways movement", and for a few days there has been exponential growth again.

The aim has always been to avoid overloading the health system, said Merkel. The tightening of the measures that has now been decided will have an impact on the holidays. But: "We are forced to act and are acting now." Bavaria's Prime Minister Markus Söder also defended the resolutions: "Corona is a catastrophe that affects our lives more than any crisis we had in the past 50 years," said the CSU chief. "If we are not careful, Germany will quickly become the problem child in all of Europe. That is why we had to and must act," said Söder.

The situation with new infections has gotten out of control, so politics must act. Therefore the motto is all or nothing. The previous partial lockdown had an effect, ultimately the medicine was not enough. One should not shrink from the necessary consequences out of convenience.

Berlin's Governing Mayor Michael Müller urged citizens to reduce contacts as much as possible. This also applies to areas of life in which there have been no "special abnormalities" in the infection process – such as schools or the craft sector, he said. There are contacts in these areas – and these contacts could lead to new infections.

These are the new corona rules

Retail will be closed from December 16 to January 10

Exceptions apply to shops that cover daily needs. These include: grocery stores, weekly markets, pick-up and delivery services, beverage markets, health food stores, pharmacies, medical supply stores, drug stores, opticians, hearing aid acousticians, petrol stations, car workshops, bicycle workshops, banks and savings banks, post offices, dry cleaners, laundromats, newspaper sales, pet supplies, feed markets, Christmas tree sales and wholesale.

Hairdressers have to close

Service companies in the field of personal care such as hairdressing salons, cosmetic studios, massage practices, tattoo studios and similar businesses will be closed. Medically necessary treatments, for example physiotherapy, occupational therapy and logotherapy, as well as podiatry / foot care, are still possible.

Christmas: five people, more households

In addition, private meetings should continue to be limited to two households and a maximum of five people – not including children under 14 years of age. An upper limit of five people should also apply at Christmas, but the number of households should be allowed to be higher. The regulation should only apply to direct relatives, it said. According to the paper, the closest family circle includes both spouses and other civil partners as well as direct relatives such as siblings, siblings and their respective household members, even if this means more than two households. This would collect the actually planned more generous easing for Christmas, which provided for up to 10 people.

Firecrackers are banned on New Year's Eve

Drinking alcoholic beverages in public places is prohibited from December 16 to January 10. Violations are fined. According to the plans, a "ban on gathering and gathering" is to be implemented nationwide on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. In addition, a fireworks ban is to apply in public places, which are determined by the municipalities. The sale of fireworks is to be generally banned this year. The Federal Ministry of the Interior should issue a corresponding ordinance.

If possible, no school or daycare visits

Schoolchildren and daycare children should stay at home for three and a half weeks at the latest from Wednesday throughout Germany whenever possible. Chancellor Angela Merkel and the Prime Ministers of the federal states agreed on this on Sunday during a corona crisis discussion. Exceptions and emergency care are possible and in some federal states such rules apply from Monday

From now on compulsory tests in old people's and nursing homes

Mandatory tests are now being introduced in the old people's and nursing homes that are particularly affected by the coronavirus. The tests should take place "several times a week," said Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) on Sunday after the corona summit with the Prime Minister in Berlin. The old people's and nursing homes required special attention. In addition, the federal government wants to support them with medical protective masks and by assuming the costs for rapid antigen tests.