Merkel declares 'new phase' of pandemic with gradual easing of Covid-19 measures
German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Wednesday unveiled plans to gradually ease virus curbs in Europe's top economy, caving to pressure from regional leaders and the public for more freedom after months
of shutdowns.
Declaring a "new phase" in the pandemic, Merkel said more socialising between households would be allowed from Monday.
Two households will be able to meet with up to five people. Currently a household can meet with one other person.
In regions with lower rates, contact rules will be loosened further.
In principle the shutdown will be extended until March 28th. But book shops, flower stores and garden centres will also reopen nationwide from Monday. Some states have already started opening these stores.
READ ALSO: Germany extends shutdown until March 28th - but loosens some measures
Further reopenings will be closely tied to local infection rates, Merkel said after talks lasting around 9 hours with state premiers.
Shops and other areas of public life will be allowed to reopen in areas with fewer than 50 new infections per 100,000 residents over a seven-day period, although some facilities will be able to reopen before that point with an appointment booking system.
Merkel had pushed for an incidence rate of 35 but was forced to back down in the face of resistance from regional premiers.
Here are the main points:
- Germany is to extend the shutdown until March 28th but aims to gradually ease measures.
- Relaxing restrictions will involve a five-step plan, with each step taken every 14 days if Covid-19 infection cases remain stable or fall.
- An emergency brake will be put in place if Covid numbers rise, putting regions back into shutdown.
- Residents will be offered one free rapid coronavirus test a week from March 8th.
- Vaccines to be ramped up and AstraZeneca given to over 65s.
There may be differences on reopening plans by federal states. The country has been in a shutdown which has largely seen public life come to a halt since the beginning of November 2020.
'Spring 2021 will be different from spring 2020'
"Today we can speak of hope and of the transition to a new phase," Merkel said.
The Chancellor added that the pandemic has resulted in difficult restrictions "in a way that has never been seen before in Germany".
However she said the measures taken had resulted in "success of which we can be proud".
Intensive care units in Germany have been brought back "from the brink of overload". And despite the spread of new virus mutations, the infection figures are "still the lowest in Europe", Merkel said.
However, 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.
She went on to say that spring 2021 "will be different from the spring of a year ago" because of "two helpers we didn't have in 2020" - vaccines and testing.
"Vaccination is the way out of the pandemic," said Merkel.
Merkel said most residents of nursing homes and staff were now vaccinated.
"We talked today about how we can push vaccination further," said Merkel, adding that the country planned to increase the interval between the first and second dose of vaccine, as recommended by the Standing Commission on Vaccination (Stiko).
Merkel also said Germany will soon authorise the AstraZeneca/Oxford Covid-19 vaccine for people over the age of 65.
Germany had previously said it lacked sufficient data to greenlight the jab for those over 65, but Merkel said that had changed thanks to recent encouraging studies.
More testing
Merkel said the relaxations of rules will be backed up by rapid and self-Covid testing. Every citizen should be able to get a Covid-19 antigen test once a week free of charge, she said.
"This offer will apply from March 8th, and the relevant test centres will be made available locally for this purpose," she said. Schools and daycare will continue to use self-administered tests.
The next round of talks are due to take place in the week of March 22nd, probably on March 24th.
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.
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Declaring a "new phase" in the pandemic, Merkel said more socialising between households would be allowed from Monday.
Two households will be able to meet with up to five people. Currently a household can meet with one other person.
In regions with lower rates, contact rules will be loosened further.
In principle the shutdown will be extended until March 28th. But book shops, flower stores and garden centres will also reopen nationwide from Monday. Some states have already started opening these stores.
READ ALSO: Germany extends shutdown until March 28th - but loosens some measures
Further reopenings will be closely tied to local infection rates, Merkel said after talks lasting around 9 hours with state premiers.
Shops and other areas of public life will be allowed to reopen in areas with fewer than 50 new infections per 100,000 residents over a seven-day period, although some facilities will be able to reopen before that point with an appointment booking system.
Merkel had pushed for an incidence rate of 35 but was forced to back down in the face of resistance from regional premiers.
Here are the main points:
- Germany is to extend the shutdown until March 28th but aims to gradually ease measures.
- Relaxing restrictions will involve a five-step plan, with each step taken every 14 days if Covid-19 infection cases remain stable or fall.
- An emergency brake will be put in place if Covid numbers rise, putting regions back into shutdown.
- Residents will be offered one free rapid coronavirus test a week from March 8th.
- Vaccines to be ramped up and AstraZeneca given to over 65s.
There may be differences on reopening plans by federal states. The country has been in a shutdown which has largely seen public life come to a halt since the beginning of November 2020.
'Spring 2021 will be different from spring 2020'
"Today we can speak of hope and of the transition to a new phase," Merkel said.
The Chancellor added that the pandemic has resulted in difficult restrictions "in a way that has never been seen before in Germany".
However she said the measures taken had resulted in "success of which we can be proud".
Intensive care units in Germany have been brought back "from the brink of overload". And despite the spread of new virus mutations, the infection figures are "still the lowest in Europe", Merkel said.
However, 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.
She went on to say that spring 2021 "will be different from the spring of a year ago" because of "two helpers we didn't have in 2020" - vaccines and testing.
"Vaccination is the way out of the pandemic," said Merkel.
Merkel said most residents of nursing homes and staff were now vaccinated.
"We talked today about how we can push vaccination further," said Merkel, adding that the country planned to increase the interval between the first and second dose of vaccine, as recommended by the Standing Commission on Vaccination (Stiko).
Merkel also said Germany will soon authorise the AstraZeneca/Oxford Covid-19 vaccine for people over the age of 65.
Germany had previously said it lacked sufficient data to greenlight the jab for those over 65, but Merkel said that had changed thanks to recent encouraging studies.
More testing
Merkel said the relaxations of rules will be backed up by rapid and self-Covid testing. Every citizen should be able to get a Covid-19 antigen test once a week free of charge, she said.
"This offer will apply from March 8th, and the relevant test centres will be made available locally for this purpose," she said. Schools and daycare will continue to use self-administered tests.
The next round of talks are due to take place in the week of March 22nd, probably on March 24th.
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.
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