BERLIN, March 4, 2021 (BSS/AFP) – German Chancellor Angela Merkel on
Wednesday agreed to gradually ease virus curbs in Europe’s top economy,
caving to political pressure and public discontent seven months before a
general election.
After more than nine hours of talks, Merkel and Germany’s 16 regional
leaders unveiled a step-by-step plan to relax restrictions after months of
shutdowns, despite concern over the spread of new and more aggressive virus
variants.
“Today, we can talk of hope and a transition to a new phase” in the fight
against the pandemic, the veteran chancellor told a Berlin press conference.
Merkel said the loosening of restrictions, tied to strict conditions, was
justified because of the imminent ramp-up in vaccinations and the arrival of
mass rapid testing.
The easing comes as Germans are losing patience with the coronavirus
measures and many businesses are struggling to stay afloat.
A recent YouGov survey found that just 35 percent of Germans supported the
current shutdowns, down from 73 percent at the start of the pandemic last
year.
From Monday, Germans will be allowed to socialise more, with up to five
adults from two households allowed to meet up. Young children will not be
counted.
Currently, one household is only allowed to meet with one other person.
Book shops, flower stores and garden centres will reopen nationwide, with
hairdressers already having reopened, as well as some schools.
– ‘Emergency brake’ –
Further reopenings in retail and other areas of public life will be allowed
in areas with fewer than 50 new infections per 100,000 residents over a
seven-day period.
Merkel had pushed for an incidence rate of 35 but was forced to back down
in the face of resistance from regional premiers.
The nationwide figure has hovered at around 60 for the past weeks, but
there are huge regional differences.
Should the incidence rate shoot up again to over 100, an “emergency brake”
will be triggered to reinstate shutdowns, Merkel said.
The relaxations will happen gradually and many of the current virus
restrictions will stay in place until March 28.
Merkel highlighted “the danger” of a possible third wave caused by the
British variant of the coronavirus. The more contagious strain now accounts
for almost half of all new infections in Germany.
– Free tests –
Faced with criticism over the slow pace of its Covid-19 inoculations,
Merkel said the country’s vaccine commission would soon authorise the
AstraZeneca/Oxford jab for the over-65s.
The regulator initially ruled there was insufficient data to greenlight the
jab for the elderly, but Merkel said recent studies had confirmed the jab’s
effectiveness.
To further speed up the inoculations, doctor’s offices will be allowed to
start injecting people by early April, alongside the jabs given in designated
vaccination centres.
Germany is also betting on mass rapid testing to ward off another surge in
Covid-19 cases.
All Germans will soon be offered at least one free rapid test a week,
Merkel said. Staff at schools and daycares, as well as pupils, will also be
tested regularly.
And cheap at-home test kits will be available in drug stores and
supermarkets in the coming days.
– Campaign mode –
It remains to be seen whether the latest announcements will be enough to
quiet the critics.
With non-essential shops, tourism and restaurants shuttered since late last
year, business federations fear a wave of bankruptcies despite the
government’s massive coronavirus aid packages.
And although Merkel was praised for her handling of the first coronavirus
wave last spring, the country has coped far less well with the second wave.
After more than 15 years in power, Merkel is due to bow out at the next
elections in September.
Observers say her legacy could be tarnished by missteps made during the
pandemic.
Opposition parties and even Merkel’s junior coalition, the centre-left
Social Democrats (SPD), are already in campaign mode and have not shied away
from attacking the chancellor.
SPD co-chief Norbert Walter-Borjans has described Merkel’s crisis
coordination as “lacking”.
Finance Minister Olaf Scholz, the SPD’s candidate for chancellor, has
openly and repeatedly slammed Germany’s slow and bureaucratic vaccination
efforts.
As of Wednesday, just 4.4 million Germans had received their first jab,
amounting to 5.3 percent of the population.