"I'm not trying to please," assured Jean Castex.
It is a somewhat perilous exercise to which the Prime Minister has agreed to comply.
He went to Samuel Etienne's home this Sunday evening, "for the sake of pedagogy", as part of his program broadcast on the Twitch platform.
Six short days after former President François Hollande, the tone was less relaxed.
And the mask of rigor.
He kept a low profile, to begin with, acknowledging that the government does not know everything about this virus, that its decisions vary as the epidemic circulates.
Immediately, questions revolved around the virus.
If containment becomes necessary, then it will be implemented.
“I never hid it, I always said it.
If it is necessary, we will do it, ”he announced at the outset, while concerns are high, particularly in Ile-de-France.
The question of youth quickly came to the table.
They who have suffered greatly from the crisis, because of the distance learning courses.
"We can continue to ensure the continuity of distance learning courses more easily with students than with children," he qualifies all the same to justify the more drastic restrictions in higher education.
"What is needed is that we move forward on the vaccination to allow us to return to college and by then not to leave anyone behind."
"The government has taken the most appropriate decisions"
Questioned on the sacrifice which would have been asked of the youth, the Prime Minister recalls that the virus also affects the youth.
“There are seriously ill young people in intensive care.
But the economic crisis resulting from the health crisis mainly affects young people, ”he admits, singling out the economic aid measures implemented for young people.
He also had to respond to the AstraZeneca vaccine, which has been the subject of several suspension measures among our European neighbors.
Jean Castex intends to reassure: “We did not suspend because we do not have elements that lead us to suspend this vaccination.
If I had any doubts, I would ask for the suspension.
A year after the onset of the health crisis, the time does not seem really to repent.
No question of recognizing any error by his predecessor and his government in the management of masks.
Yes, the government could perhaps have better explained certain decisions and had more effective discussions with the communities.
But “the government has taken the most appropriate decisions”.
A new call to caregivers
Asked about the vaccination of caregivers, which was slow to take off, “the rate of vaccination of caregivers is still variable, I think we are at 40%.
Yes, sometimes that makes me angry, he regrets… But the Prime Minister, he must not be angry, he must act.
Our role is to convince them, to tell them.
Get vaccinated
.
There are still reservations but the movement is well underway.
"
No date for the reopening of restaurants
“All we close is heartbreak.
For me, closing restaurants and bars is very painful.
It is a French art of living, not just an economic sector, but we know that it is one of the places where we contaminate ourselves the most ”.
At this stage, the incidence rate of the virus is considered too high to reverse the closure of establishments.
Opening only the terraces is not the order of the day either.
But the Prime Minister recalls working on protocols that will allow it in the long term.
Regarding cinemas, theaters and other cultural venues, Jean Castex does not embark on a firm commitment in terms of schedule either.
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"Our country must also prepare for the post-crisis period", defends the Prime Minister all the same.
The vaccination passport?
"I am for only if it is effective", he affirms, explaining that uncertainties still hang over this device.
The post-crisis period will also be the repayment of a colossal debt.
On this point, the head of government sticks to the good old recipes: growth.
“At the end of this crisis, there will surely be a strong will, perhaps to consume,” he hopes.
Jean Castex shows his opposition to any tax hike.
"We cannot take a department in isolation"
While the executive has been wondering for several days about the need to reconfigure Ile-de-France, Jean Castex affirms that all the epidemic criteria are not met in the region.
“I am taking the necessary measures in view of the local and territorial situations.
There are departments in Ile-de-France that have exceeded the threshold (
Editor's note: maximum alert
), as in Seine-Saint-Denis.
But, in this region, "we cannot take a department in isolation, we are obliged to take the Ile-de-France" as a whole, because of the important mixing.
"Stopcovid did not produce all the results we expected"
The Prime Minister, and this is perhaps the only point on which he acknowledged certain shortcomings, returned to the development of the Stopcovid application.
Undoubtedly, Stopcovid has not produced all the results expected, he concedes, while insisting on the informative role of the application, which has been enriched for several months.
"Darmanin has the right to respect for his innocence"
This is perhaps one of the great interests of this format, much freer than a traditional Covid press conference.
“Why did you appoint Gérald Darmanin to the Ministry of the Interior?
», Asks a user, referring to the investigations which weigh on him.
After a second of hesitation, Castex starts.
"Mr. Darmanin has the right to respect for his innocence", he proclaims, inadvertently forgetting to speak of "presumption" of innocence.
The political debate is carried on the ground of the institutions.
Jean Castex defends the Fifth Republic, which he does not consider outdated.
He wonders whether it is not necessary to make voting compulsory, without deciding.
The recognition of the blank vote is defined as "an interesting avenue", even if it would not fundamentally change the force of things.
Castex does not support the legalization of cannabis
An entirely different subject than the Covid has aroused the interest of Internet users: cannabis.
Is the Prime Minister in favor of its legalization?
"Frankly, no," he blurted out clearly, causing some misunderstanding in an audience who did not fail to recall that alcohol and tobacco were also harmful to health.
And perfectly legal.
