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Bavaria's Prime Minister Markus Söder
Photo: Sven Hoppe / dpa
After the agreement between the federal and state governments to tighten contact restrictions, Chancellor Angela Merkel and the prime ministers asked for understanding.
Bavaria's Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) announced that he was expecting the restrictions to continue until the end of December.
The limitation of the current measures is based only on the fact that the corresponding regulations may no longer apply for legal reasons, said Söder after a cabinet meeting in Munich.
He pointed out the serious consequences of the currently high number of infections.
"The hospitals are full," said Söder, the first clinics were sending emergency signals.
If the current number of 83 deaths per day continues until Christmas, 2500 people would die in Bavaria alone by then.
"That is a difficult fate for the people," said Söder.
Söder described the current shutdown as a partial success.
Tougher measures would result in faster relief, he said.
The level of infection is currently the highest in the entire pandemic to date.
"We experience a very high level of stress, even though we have more intensive care beds," said Söder, referring to the situation in the healthcare system.
Similar to what Merkel had announced in her government statement this morning, Söder also insisted that all European ski areas be closed until January 10th.
Laschet relies on hope
In the Düsseldorf state parliament, however, the North Rhine-Westphalian Prime Minister Armin Laschet (CDU) emphasized that it was important "not to give up now."
In particular, the expected approval of a vaccine this year is cause for hope: "We are on the home straight."
Unlike in past centuries, humanity is no longer standing idly by a pandemic.
Within nine months, “clever scientists” had developed a vaccine that protected people - for Laschet one of three “rays of light”.
"If everyone participates, that is more effective than any regulation"
Armin Laschet
The economy also developed more positively than expected in the third quarter.
As a third "bright spot", the Prime Minister cited the planned improvement of the Corona warning app.
As soon as the contact tracking is digitized, the health authorities would also be relieved.
At the same time, Laschet appealed to the citizens to comply with the measures decided for Christmas on their own responsibility.
"If everyone participates, it's more effective than any regulation," he said.
Nobody will count on Christmas Eve how many people are gathered under the Christmas tree.
The Prime Minister announced that overnight stays in hotels should be possible when visiting families over Christmas.
"That is not understood by tourist travel," said Laschet.
His Hessian counterpart Volker Bouffier (CDU) had previously announced that he would allow hotel stays for a while.
Berlin's governing mayor Michael Müller appealed to the people's sense of responsibility.
"Making things possible does not mean that everything has to be used that is possible," said the SPD politician.
The end of the pandemic has not yet come.
"We are in a situation where there really is a matter of life and death in many areas."
Saxony wants to ban alcohol in public
Saxony's Prime Minister Michael Kretschmer (CDU), on the other hand, announced further restrictions for regions with particularly high numbers of corona infections.
These should apply from next week.
Among other things, fewer people will then be allowed to meet.
It should be possible to prohibit drinking alcohol in public.
In view of the “mulled wine season”, a ban on alcohol in public was obvious, “because one or the other cannot escape the temptation” and larger gatherings would then arise again.
In addition, residents in the affected areas should only leave their homes for good reason.
The cabinet in Dresden should discuss the details on Friday.
The Saxon Switzerland-Eastern Ore Mountains district is currently in second place nationwide with a seven-day incidence of 364 new infections per 100,000 inhabitants.
The Saxon districts of Zwickau, Bautzen and the Erzgebirgskreis are also among the 15 districts with the highest incidences.
The lone front runner is currently the southern Thuringian district of Hildburghausen with a seven-day incidence of almost 603 new infections per 100,000 inhabitants.
The Thuringian Prime Minister Bodo Ramelow was therefore not yet able to give the all-clear for his federal state: "The infection process is so diffuse that it affects the entire population."
"We have to be careful not to break the schools in public"
Bodo Ramelow
In Hildburghausen there should be a mass test among children and adolescents from next week.
This should show whether schools are drivers of infection at all.
"We have to be careful that we don't destroy schools in public and that we constantly give teachers and parents the feeling that there is fear there," said Ramelow.
Thuringia does not bring the start of the holidays to December 19th
Unlike other federal states, Thuringia does not bring its holiday start to a uniform December 19, but remains on December 23.
However, students from grade 7 should stay at home in the days before Christmas and receive distance lessons there.
Baden-Württemberg's Prime Minister Winfried Kretschmann (Greens) warned against falling into euphoria in view of the hope for corona vaccines.
The successfully tested vaccines would bring the end of the pandemic closer, said Kretschmann in the Stuttgart state parliament.
For now, however, people would have to continue to adhere to the restrictions that have been decided.
"Otherwise we act like a parachutist who drops his parachute in anticipation before landing," said Kretschmann.
With numbers well over 50 new infections per 100,000 inhabitants in seven days, Baden-Württemberg is practically nationwide on the red alert.
"We all agreed that daycare centers and schools have the highest priority"
Winfried Kretschmann
Kretschmann defended the tightened measures against the pandemic in the state parliament against criticism from the opposition.
Keeping the schools open was a political decision that was correct "against the infection situation".
"We all agreed that daycare centers and schools have the highest priority," said Kretschmann about the negotiations between the federal and state governments.
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mfh / dpa / AFP