French PM Edouard Philippe to present plan to ease Coronavirus lockdown on Tuesday

France Prime Minister Edouard Philippe is set to present the government’s plan to relax a lockdown which has been imposed since March 17 to stem the spread of Coronavirus in the country, international media reported citing his office. Philippe will propose the plan on April 28 in the Parliament following which debate and a vote would take place leading to the final decision. As of now, the lockdown is scheduled to be lifted on May 11.

According to international media reports, President Emmanuel Macron is aiming at unwinding some of the measures due to mounting debts and economic losses in the country. It is also speculated that the French president might start with the reopening of schools, however, the final decision still rests in the hands of the government. As of now, the French government has reportedly shown a desire for retailers to reopen on May 11. 

The Coronavirus pandemic has infected a total of 161,488 people in France, making it the fourth worst-hit nation in the world. A total of 22,614 have died as another 44,594 have recovered from the lethal infection. 

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'We are scoring points against the epidemic' 

Speaking at a press conference recently, Philippe said that the "situation is improving gradually, slowly, but surely" and the epidemic is "slowing". He further stressed, “a nationwide lockdown which entered into force on March 17 to halt the spread of the virus must be strictly respected until May 11, when it will start being lifted in phases.”

Further, warning that the country was not “out of the crisis” yet, Philippe reportedly said that “lifting anti-infection barrier measures too soon risked unleashing a second wave of the epidemic,” according to international media reports. He was quoted saying that there was no evidence of the “widespread build-up of immunity in France.” 

Health Minister Olivier Veran was quoted as saying that the efficacy of public mask-wearing as a means of epidemic control was "controversial". However, the premier reportedly announced that people in France will have to continue wearing protective face masks on public transport past May 11 when the lockdown might be lifted.

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