Amid risks of a push back from a population wearied by successive restrictions, the French government is mulling tougher anti-Covid curbs – including a third lockdown – after conceding a nightly curfew was failing to suppress the spread of the virus, reports FRANCE 24.
When it comes to deciding on new measures to combat the coronavirus pandemic, French President Emmanuel Macron and his government are walking a tightrope. Should another nationwide lockdown – the third in less than 12 months – be quickly imposed on the French, as scientists are advocating? Or should the government wait a few more weeks, or even opt for a less strict approach, so as not to alienate part of the population?
It is a decision that has left the state’s leaders in a quandary. The French, like so much of the rest of the world, are increasingly succumbing to a generalised state of weariness after nearly a year of living under Covid-19 restrictions.
But government spokesman Gabriel Attal left little room for doubt over what the government’s next move might be after the council of ministers met at the Élysée Palace on January 27 to discuss the pandemic response.
"The 6pm curfew has been relatively ineffective. We have data to show that ... at this stage, it does not sufficiently slow down the circulation of the virus," Attal said. Faced with this situation, the scenarios under consideration range "from maintaining the current framework to a very tight containment", he added.