The French minister of health Olivier Véran has warned that the implementation of a third lockdown in France can’t be ruled out if the level of Covid-19 infections "were to worsen”, reports RFI.
Speaking to the Journal du Dimanche weekly newspaper, Véran said: "We will never rule out measures that may be necessary to protect the population. That does not mean that we've made up our minds, but that we are continuing to monitor the situation by the hour."
The French authorities fear the arrival of a third wave in the weeks following the Christmas holidays, especially since the spread of the virus remains high in the country, with some 15,000 infections now being recorded per day, while the rate had previously been lowered to 11,000 daily cases.”
Véran also reiterated the government’s objective of bringing the number of cases per day to under 5,000.
“The pressure on the health system remains high, with 1,500 hospitalizations per day,” said the minister, adding that the Macron administration is ready to take "the necessary measures if the situation worsens."