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The situation in the morning - vaccinations, Switzerland, herd immunity, Madrid, Armin Laschet, France

2021-05-04T08:13:51.861Z


The European trend towards opening reaches the Federal Republic. Vaccinated people should soon be allowed to do more again. The vaccination campaign is finally running. And: Madrid, the Sweden of the south. That is the situation on Tuesday morning.


Today it is about the European opening trend, which is slowly reaching the Federal Republic of Germany.

We also deal with the easing for vaccinated people, the success of the German vaccination campaign and we take a look at Madrid, the Sweden of the south.

The European easing trend is reaching Germany

Spring is now also arriving in Germany: After most of the neighboring countries have announced openings or have already implemented openings,

a tentative exit from the lockdown

is also becoming apparent in several federal states

. The

official incidence

has already

fallen

below 100

in many counties, especially in the north

. And then the federal emergency brake ends and each federal state is again responsible for its own course. Today wants to be in particularly strict

Hamburg

the Senate to deal with the question of the curfew - after the incidence here fell below 100 for the first time.

In Lower Saxony, too, they are thinking about easing, in Bavaria they have been announced for next week.

Often it is about the opening of the restaurant terraces (which is already a reality in parts of Saarland and Schleswig-Holstein).

This is

a consequence of the falling numbers across the country

: They are developing much more graciously than some of the scientific modelers had predicted.

Enlarge image

Soon also more in Germany?

A street scene from Venlo, the Netherlands, from last week

Photo: Christoph Reichwein (CREI) / imago images / Reichwein

Easings have been in force for some time in other European countries - for example

in Denmark, Italy and the Netherlands

.

In all of these countries the terraces are already open again.

The most massive openings

came into force in

Switzerland

two weeks

ago, against the advice of the scientific task force and in disregard of the government's opening criteria: even indoor events are allowed there again.

Nevertheless, the numbers are currently falling.

It's too early to tell if the Swiss government will win their daring bet.

However, it seems that the European easing trend is now arriving in Germany with some delay.

Those who have been vaccinated and those who have recovered will soon be able to do more

Enlarge image

The vaccination pass is still yellow - it will soon be replaced by a green EU vaccination pass

Photo: Marijan Murat / dpa

Throughout Germany,

targeted easing for vaccinated and convalescent people is to

come

quickly

- which has even already been decided in many federal states.

As early

as next weekend

, nationwide

curfews and contact bans

for citizens who have been completely vaccinated or who have recovered in the past six months could be eliminated.

You would then no longer need any tests for visiting the hairdresser or in shops.

Vaccinated and convalescents are also to be treated with a negative test result when entering the country, and in most cases they no longer have to be in quarantine.

The

EU Commission

recommends the same

the 27 member states: They should open the borders to vaccinated tourists in the summer.

And finally that:

The vaccination rate in Germany is now one of the highest in the world

.

In many federal states, priority group 3 has already been called up and the vaccination sequence has already been completely dissolved in many places.

Soon 30 percent of Germans will be vaccinated once, according to the Central Institute for Statutory Health Insurance it could be half by the end of May, and three quarters by mid-June.

In short:

there hasn't been so much reason for optimism for a long time as there is now.

The summer can come.

  • Corona pandemic: Spahn is aiming to relax those vaccinated this week

Is herd immunity unattainable?

Enlarge image

Vaccination Station in New York City

Photo: Mary Altaffer / AP

However, if you look at the

USA

, which is way ahead of us when it comes to vaccination, one thing becomes clear:

The number of vaccinations is stagnating there

, the country is practically swimming in vaccine - and around a third of the population is rather skeptical about vaccination, above all republican men. The herd immunity, which so many dreamed of at the beginning of the pandemic, could therefore be unattainable - up to 80 percent of the population would have to be vaccinated for this. That means:

The virus will probably stay

, even if the number of infections drops massively.

In Germany, too, the vaccine could soon exceed the number of those willing to be vaccinated.

Nevertheless, my colleague Julia Merlot dares to make the forecast: schools, restaurants and shops could reopen in summer, smaller celebrations and events with a hygiene concept would be possible

  • The crux of the matter is the willingness to be vaccinated: Soon we will all determine herd immunity

Story of the day: Madrid - the Sweden of the south

Enlarge image

Good mood on the streets of Madrid

Photo: 

Pablo Blazquez Dominguez / Getty Images

Bars, restaurants and fitness studios have been open

in

Madrid

for a long time: Regional

President

Isabel Díaz Ayuso

has made the Spanish capital the party capital of Europe - in the middle of the pandemic.

With her decidedly relaxed corona course, the conservative politician wants to win the regional election today.

Our Spain reporter Steffen Lüdke walked through the bars in Madrid on a normal Friday evening, listened to a concert and accompanied the candidate during the election campaign.

Read his report here:

  • Loose corona course in Madrid: The Sweden of the south

Laschet and the problem of climate protection

Enlarge image

CDU party leader Laschet on Monday

Photo: Michael Kappeler / dpa

Chancellor

Angela Merkel

already wants to

talk to her government partners about a new climate protection law - after the Federal Constitutional Court found the old one to be inadequate. And

CDU boss Armin Laschet

now also wants to go on the offensive - but that's not easy because

Markus Söder

made life difficult for

him

with a rival proposal in advance. Söder demanded that Germany should become climate neutral by 2040 - instead of 2050, as previously planned. Laschet, on the other hand, only has a vague "well before the middle of the century" to offer - and he says nothing about phasing out coal.

In his analysis, my colleague Kevin Hagen describes how Laschet simply does not want to take the lead in terms of content.

The climate issue could become decisive in this election campaign - and at the same time it is a difficult problem for the CDU leader.

Because in his party the representatives of the different wings all want something different.

  • CDU Chancellor candidate Laschet: Where are you going to leave?

Loser of the day ...

Enlarge image

President Macron with his wife Brigitte

Photo: Ludovic Marin / AP

... are

20 retired generals of the French army

who expressed sympathy for a

military coup

in an open letter to the population

. Yes, that's right: for a military coup in France. Namely: to

restore

French civilization

, which is threatened, the nation is threatened with destruction by Islamism and the "hordes of the banlieue". It warns of a "race war waged by the hateful and fanatical supporters of a certain anti-racism."

If President Macron did nothing, the army would have to intervene to prevent a

civil war

that left thousands dead. The alarming thing is not only that very old generals actually wrote this letter and that more than a thousand other ex-military officers, including 18 active ones, signed it. And not only that the right-wing populist Marine Le Pen assured the generals of her support. Rather, according to a representative survey, 58 percent of the French questioned also support the generals - and 49 percent support the demand for military intervention. The military leadership now wants to take disciplinary action against the signatories. But the frightening impression remains that French society is

a year before the presidential election

is so permanently destabilized that one can only worry.

The latest news from the night

  • Bill and Melinda Gates are getting divorced:

    They were married for 27 years - now Microsoft founder Bill Gates and his wife Melinda go their separate ways.

    Both have announced this in a joint statement

  • Series of »NSU-2.0« -drohmails before the investigation:

    Since 2018 threatening letters under the abbreviation »NSU 2.0« have been sent to politicians, journalists and lawyers, among others.

    Now the alleged author has been arrested.

    But questions remain

  • Joe Biden quadruples the US upper limit for the admission of refugees:

    Joe Biden had even heard a lot from his own party - now the US president is correcting himself: significantly more refugees should be admitted.

    But with restrictions

The SPIEGEL + recommendations for today

  • Tourism industry and Corona: how good will summer be?

  • Private old-age provision: "The insurance industry benefits more than the people from the Riester pension"

  • Noise in Berlin - Why people in the big city can drive other people crazy with their riot

  • Married for life: "If you are together, stay together"

I wish you a good start to the day.

Your Mathieu von Rohr

Source: spiegel

All news articles on 2021-05-04

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