Deconfinement, chapter 2. "I give an appointment to the French at the end of May to assess the conditions in we will organize a new phase of deconfinement", had warned Edouard Philippe on April 28 before the deputies. The time has therefore come for the executive, which must make new decisions this week concerning this second phase, effective from June 2.
Reopening or not of cafes, restaurants, cinemas, theaters, sports halls, all beaches, end or not of the limitation of trips to 100 kilometers from home, opening of high schools or even loosening of conditions of 'reception of pupils in primary and nursery schools: the choices will be as numerous as delicate. They should be announced Wednesday May 27 or Thursday May 28 by the Prime Minister and the ministers concerned, once the opinion of the scientific council has been taken. Or even by the President of the Republic Emmanuel Macron himself, if the news was not good.
"Until the last moment, it can evolve"
This weekend, the executive did not want to go ahead with the decisions to be made. And for good reason: the decisions have not yet been made and depend on the evolution of the epidemiological situation. However, it has only been two weeks since France began its deconfinement. This is roughly the duration of the maximum incubation period for the Covid-19 virus before the appearance of the first symptoms… So be careful.
But at the Elysee Palace as in the ministries, we seem to be rather optimistic for the time being on the development of the situation. As a sign of this state of mind: the confirmation of the holding of the second round of municipal elections on June 28, the authorization of religious ceremonies in places of worship this weekend or even… this call from Emmanuel Macron to the humorist Jean-Marie Bigard giving him reason, according to the latter, on the reopening of bars.
Will phase 2 of the deconfinement see a France cut more than ever in two, between a green zone where life would gradually resume and a red zone with unchanged restrictions? Or, on the contrary, will it see the red zone evolve into a pale red zone with alleviations such as the reopening of parks and public gardens? "Everything is possible and until the last moment, it can evolve," breathes a ministerial adviser.
Pressure from regional elected officials
The elected officials are already increasing the pressure. When the outgoing mayor (PS) Anne Hidalgo continues to demand the reopening of parks and public gardens in Paris, Valérie Pécresse, the president (ex-LR) of the Ile-de-France region, requests the reopening of leisure centers and makes know that high schools have started to be disinfected.
“We got out of the hurricane. We could already be in the green zone! ", Outraged the president (LR) of the Grand Est region, Jean Rottner, whose ten departments have been classified red since May 11. "Red is danger, it scares and slows down the economic recovery", alarmed the elected official. According to him, if the map of France for deconfinement had been updated, only Ile-de-France would still be in red today.
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"The new card that will be presented takes into account new criteria such as the results of the tests," we warn on the side of the Directorate General of Health. Data, in the course of consolidation, which have not yet been made public. But the government already knows that it will have to explain itself. “The cardinal value is pedagogy. You have to take the time to explain it well, blows a ministerial adviser. However, June 2 will be a milestone in the crisis. "