Deconfinement is fast approaching. The French are impatiently awaiting the reopening of restaurants, bars, sports halls, cultural places. Friday April 30, Emmanuel Macron clarified in the regional press the calendar for the next few weeks. Four dates are to be remembered: May 3, 19 and June 9 and 30.
- The stages of the deconfinement calendar
- Nurseries, schools, colleges and high schools
- Restaurants, bars and cafes
- Museums, cinemas and concert halls
- Sports halls
- Curfew and travel restrictions
- What about daily teleworking?
- Reopen by region?
Emmanuel Macron finally decided to reveal the main dates of deconfinement via an interview given to the regional daily press and not on the air. A 4-step plan which will begin on May 3 and which provides for a gradual lifting of health restrictions and a return (almost) to normal at the start of summer.
Four dates are to be remembered: May 3, 19 and June 9 and 30.
The stages of the deconfinement calendar
May 3
May 19
June 9
June 30th
Nurseries, schools, colleges and high schools
The start of the school year is maintained on April 26 for nurseries and primary schools and on May 3 for colleges and high schools, confirmed the Head of State to local elected officials. Dates "engraved in marble" for the tenant of the Elysée, blew to AFP one of the mayors present. The government spokesman, Gabriel Attal, also confirmed that the reopening of schools would take place as planned. "We are preparing for the gradual reopening of the country", he announced in the columns of Les Echos on Thursday April 15, specifying that new health protocols are being considered in the hope of a gradual reopening of the territories from mid- may.
Restaurants, bars and cafes
Catering establishments will be able to welcome the public in mid-May, hopes Emmanuel Macron. But not entirely. Only terraces and café-restaurants could be open initially.
A few days later, Monday April 26, the President slightly clarified the stages for opening restaurants: "there is the stage of May 3, there will be mid-May, there will be a stage - I think - around at the beginning of June, and then another mid-, end of June", explained the Head of State during a trip to Melun in Seine-et-Marne. "Each will depend on the results we have obtained: we always look for ten to fifteen days how to consolidate the results (...)". Obtaining authorization to receive customers could be done depending on the level of circulation of the virus in the surroundings. “I think that we cannot reopen the restaurants, say at the end of May or in June, in departments where it still circulates a lot (…) in other (departments) where it has dropped a lot, I think that 'we will have to open them,' he said.
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According to information from Europe 1, the terraces will be accessible from May 19 on the condition of accepting tables of six people maximum. It will be necessary to wait until June 9 to be able to settle inside restaurants and cafes, always within the limit of 6 people maximum per table.
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Museums, cinemas and concert halls
According to Europe 1 and Paris Normandie, the reopening of museums, monuments, cinemas, theaters, performance halls with seated audiences is set for May 19, respecting a gauge set at 800 indoors and 1,000 outdoors.
The reopening will be accompanied by strict health rules. For cinemas, they will only be able to accommodate 35% of their capacity then on June 9, the gauge will be increased to 65%, and finally if the epidemic is controlled, to 100% on June 30. The mask will be compulsory. Bad news: the food sales areas will be closed. No popcorn and no sodas until further notice.
Sports halls
To the great misfortune of customers, the gyms have been closed for six months. During a press conference held on April 22, the Prime Minister, Jean Castex, indicated "the reopening of certain businesses but also for certain sports activities (...)" for mid-May. According to Europe 1, fitness centers could reopen on June 9 if they undertake to respect a strict health protocol.
Curfew and travel restrictions
On April 21, Gabriel Attal announced that the certificates and the limitation of travel, particularly within a radius of 10km, will end on the evening of May 2. What Jean Castex confirmed, Thursday, April 22.
The curfew imposed at 7 p.m. since March 31 should not be abolished but extended to 9 p.m. from May 19, informs Europe 1.
What about daily teleworking?
Despite the deconfinement, teleworking is maintained until June 9, assures Europe 1. From this date, it will be relaxed.
Reopen by region?
According to several mayors, the President of the Republic hinted that the reopenings could be “territorialized” according to the state of health in the different regions, so as “not to replay the deconfinement of last May”. As the mayor of Cognac, Morgan Berger, told AFP, the head of state said he wanted a “reopening which would be gradual, in phases of two, three weeks” and “perhaps by territory”. A hypothesis confirmed a few days later by the Minister of Health Olivier Véran. “We will be able to consider a certain number of reductions”, he indicated on April 19 to the Telegram, specifying that the development of the measures could be done territory by territory.
Generalized or local deconfinement … Emmanuel Macron could address the French by the end of the month, AFP learned from a government source.
