May 29th 2020

Day 72 and 4th day of de-confinement week 3

The Prime Minister M. Edourd Phlippe and associated Ministers made the announcement of the new rules for the second phase of de-confinement. These rules will apply from June 2nd to June 21st. I give more details in the “News” section below.

Almost all of France is now green. That does not mean the virus has stopped. It is a must to remain extremely vigilant in particular persons at risk (like good old me).

Today’s data from official sites for the statistics below does not show Honk Kong anymore. It is either a mistake but I suspect the Chinese Government is working very quickly and it is no longer one country two systems but one country only. I’ll check on other sites.

Europe v USA As of yesterday, the number of deaths in the USA has gone over the 100.000 mark. I thought it would be time to compare data between the 2 continents. This time however I collected the data for the 27 EU member countries which no longer includes the UK and it shows that the rate of deaths per million in the US is almost 8% higher that in Europe. The number of cases is per million double that of the EU. Kind of interesting I think.

Pic of the day

The daily dash board

France

Occitanie

Information, news and tips

Here follows the main anouncements and new rules for the second de-confinement period.

Lifting of the 100 kilometre rule for the whole country
The French will now be able to move freely, announced Edouard Philippe. Indeed, there is “no longer any justification” for limiting travel to more than 100 kilometres around one’s home, he said. However, this should not be seen as a “relaxation of tension”.

A new map of deconfinement
The government presented a new map of deconfinement on Thursday. The lights are green for almost all of France, with the Île-de-France region, Mayotte and French Guiana classified as orange zones. “Specific concerns remain. In these departments, the virus circulates a little more than elsewhere,” says Olivier Véran, the Minister of Health.

Bars, restaurants and cafes will reopen on June 2nd in the green zone.
It was a long-awaited date for professionals, as well as for some of their clients. From June 2, bars, cafés and restaurants will be able to reopen their doors. But this date only applies to establishments located in the green zone: for the areas classified as orange (i.e. Île-de-France, French Guiana and Mayotte), only terraces will be able to welcome the public from 2 June.

All the students will go back to school.
The middle and high schools will finally be able to reopen on 2 June, “at least part of the week,” said Jean-Michel Blanquer, the Minister of National Education. However, disparities can be observed depending on the colour of the zones. As for the baccalaureate, the oral French test has been cancelled and will, like the entire baccalaureate and brevet, be validated by continuous assessment.

Campsites and hotels will resume their activity
With the lifting of the 100 kilometre limit, it’s time to book your summer holidays… in France, for the moment! The government has specified the terms of our holidays, which will differ according to the colour of the area defined by the map. Concerning European borders, a decision must be taken by 15 June as to whether it will be possible to travel within the EU, Edouard Philippe said.

Limited gatherings, parks and gardens, swimming pools, beaches… accessible.
While public gatherings in the public space will remain limited to a maximum of 10 people, a number of leisure facilities will be able to reopen their doors. As of this weekend, parks and gardens will open.

As for beaches, swimming pools, gymnasiums, theatres, museums and concert halls, the date of reopening depends, once again, on the colour of the area concerned. It should be noted that, for the moment, nightclubs, game rooms and the practice of team sports or contact sports are still prohibited.

The StopCovid application will be available as of June 2nd.
Data protection, respect for privacy… The development of the StopCovid contact-tracing application has been the subject of much discussion lately. Defined as an effective “complementary tool” in the fight against Covid-19, it will be available and downloadable on smartphones from June 2, announced Edouard Philippe.

In all cases, the distancing rules as known today are still valid. Meetings are up to 10 people only. In bars and restaurants tables must be spaced to ensure the minimum 1 metre bewteen groups. No standing at the counter in a bar. Service is only permitted at tables. Of course if you are in an orange zone (Paris, Ile de France, Mayotte, French Guinea) to go inside bars or restaurants is not allowed.