Angela Merkel’s government will close shops and schools from Wednesday until after the New Year.
Germany is closing a large part of the country’s stores throughout the Christmas period in an attempt to get the corona infection under control.
This was stated by Chancellor Angela Merkel after a meeting with Prime Ministers of the country’s 16 states on video on Sunday.
According to the news agency Reuters, the stores must close from Wednesday and remain closed until January 10. Only vital shops such as supermarkets, pharmacies and banks are allowed to stay open.
The country’s schools are also due to close from Wednesday, and the country’s employers are being asked to let as many employees as possible work from home.
In addition to the closure of schools and workplaces, drinking alcohol in public will also be banned.
Six week restrictions
Germany has already been in partial closure for six weeks, with bars and restaurants closed – while shops and schools have so far been allowed to stay open.
But high infection rates in the past week are now causing the German government to shut the country down further.
Throughout the week, Germany has registered between 20,000 and 30,000 infected every day.
Sunday’s figures from the German Robert Koch Institute show 20,200 new infected and 321 new registered deaths. In total, Germany has registered almost 22,000 corona-related deaths.
States have moved on
The rise in infection rates has already prompted several states to implement their own shutdowns.
From next week, the Land of Badem-Württemberg plans to impose a night curfew and restrictions on exit. This means that citizens may only leave their homes with a recognizable purpose such as going to work, writes the German news agency dpa.
Also in the state of Saxony, where there is the highest infection in the country at the moment, schools, day care centers and many shops will close from Monday until 10 January. In Saxony, a curfew is planned between 10 pm and 6 am.
Another high-infection state is Thuringia, where the state’s prime minister has decided to close all shops from Monday. Only grocery stores remain open.
Source: nyheder.tv2.dk
