Why France has been so slow to start its Covid vaccination campaign
In his New Year's Eve address to the nation President Emmanuel Macron made clear his intention to speed up France's Covid vaccination programme, apparently stung by the country's slow performance compared with many others. Privately he is said to be angry at its “unwarranted slowness” and as a result the country is expected to step up its campaign this week. So far the number of vaccinations in France measures in the low hundreds compared with tens or hundreds of thousands - or even millions - in some other countries. Caroline Coq-Chodorge reports on the public mistrust that lies behind France's sluggish start in vaccinating its population.
TheThe Covid epidemic follows its tragic course in France as in other countries. This weekend, from January 2nd, a tougher 6pm curfew has been imposed in large sections of the east and south-east of France, in the regions of the Grand Est, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, where there are currently the most cases.
