A few weeks ago, that was irrelevant.
Germany did not "intend" to switch to "compulsory vaccination", its leaders still indicated on July 13.
"I do not think that we can gain confidence by going back on what we said", then indicated the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel.
Since this summer, the situation has changed.
The circulation of Covid-19 has never been so strong in Germany, with around 50,000 new cases per day, and an incidence over a week of 452 per 100,000 inhabitants, according to the national health authority, the Robert Koch Institute.
And the question of compulsory vaccination is gaining ground, while more than 20% of adults are not vaccinated.
Read also Compulsory vaccine against Covid-19: after Austria, could France impose it?
The future German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Tuesday he was in favor of compulsory vaccination against Covid-19 to stem the outbreak of infections in his country.
In a few days, he will officially take his place at the head of the country, after 16 years under the leadership of Angela Merkel.
The coronavirus, he acknowledged at a press conference on November 24, is the priority, before the application of the common program, the “coalition contract”, concluded between the Social Democrats (SPD), the Greens ( environmentalists) and liberals (FDP).
This could be the first post-Merkel measure
Could it be that one of the first measures of the future chancellor is the imposition of an injection on all Germans, so far very opposed to this measure? Olaf Scholz "signaled his sympathy for such a regulation", during a meeting with Angela Merkel and the leaders of the 16 German regions, which unlike France decide the main health policies. And assured that the parliament will vote on this issue before the end of the year.
During the meeting, German leaders spoke of a tightening of anti-Covid restrictions. Closures of bars and clubs are in particular under study, according to the German media, while ten days ago, a first turn of the screw has already been made, without success for the moment. Many places open to the public are reserved for vaccinated or cured people. It is not possible to present a negative test, as in France. One way of pushing the Germans into the vaccination centers.
But in reality, all eyes are now on the Austrian neighbor, who, overwhelmed by the wave of contamination, has reconfined and imposed the injection on all adults. The vaccination obligation seemed unthinkable until now, but Austria is leading the way in Europe. So much so "that there are debates on this subject in the Bundestag, all parties included", recognizes the entourage of the future social democratic chancellor.
A milestone has also been taken recently. Caregivers and soldiers will need to be fully immunized very soon to comply with regulations. Some region presidents are pushing to expand to the entire population. Markus Söder (CSU), President of Bavaria and Winfried Kretschmann, President of Baden-Württemberg, published a column in the FAZ newspaper to this effect. They consider this restriction essential to avoid other attacks on freedoms, materialized by confinements.
It remains to convince the parliament, and the reluctant.
The German Minister of Health regularly maintains that this measure would be counterproductive to any opposition.
However, the debate is starting to pervade society as a whole.
Compulsory vaccination, long rejected by a majority of Germans, is now demanded by nearly two thirds of them (64%), according to a recent poll by RTL and ntv media.