“We’re ruling out the thought of a lockdown for now, whether or not it’s nationally or domestically,” Olivier Veran mentioned on France 2 public TV channel.
“However we are going to suggest an extension of the curfew that would begin at 18h as an alternative of 20h in all of the areas the place it is going to be deemed vital,” Veran mentioned.
France, which has the very best circumstances depend in Western Europe and the fifth on this planet at 2.57 million, has already been by way of two lockdowns, the primary from 17 March to 11 Could and the second from 30 October to fifteen December.
Since that date, the lockdown has been changed by an 20h to 6h. nationwide curfew, and, opposite to what was initially hoped for, cultural venues have remained closed as a result of the each day new infections haven’t gone beneath the 5,000 goal set by the federal government.
French well being authorities earlier reported 11,395 new coronavirus infections over the previous 24 hours, leaping above the ten,000 threshold for the primary time in 4 days.
The seven-day transferring common of recent infections, which averages out weekly knowledge reporting irregularities, stands at 11,871.
France, which started its gradual vaccination marketing campaign on Sunday, additionally noticed the variety of individuals hospitalized for the illness rise for the fourth day operating, a sequence unseen since 13 November.
The COVID-19 demise toll was up by 969, at 64,078 – the seventh-highest on this planet – versus a seven day transferring common of 339.