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Bloomberg
Chancellor Angela Merkel proposed extending and tightening Germany’s lockdown after Covid-19 contagion rates nearly doubled in a month, highlighting Europe’s struggles to contain the pandemic.
The plan would prolong current curbs through April 18 and calls for new measures in hard-hit areas, according to a chancellery draft seen by Bloomberg. Merkel and regional leaders will discuss the proposals as infections reach levels that would trigger more stringent measures on Europe’s biggest economy.
Just weeks after the chancellor laid out a plan to gradually reopen shops and restaurants, the move would be a blow to pandemic-weary Germans, who opinion polls suggest have become increasingly disgruntled with the government’s handling of the crisis.
Amid sputtering vaccination programs across Europe, lockdowns have been reimposed in Italy and France in the past week. In Austria, the government will meet on Monday with health officials and opposition parties as rising infection rates force it to reconsider plans to ease curbs on parts of the economy.
Europe’s sluggish pace of immunizations has sparked a spat with the U.K. over possibly blocking vaccine exports. The effort was further complicated last week after Germany and other countries temporarily suspended using AstraZeneca Plc’s shot over blood-clotting concerns.
Read more: Vaccine Battle Heats Up With EU Ready to Halt U.K. Shipments
The European Union has administered doses covering 6.4% of the population, less than a third of what the U.K. has managed, according to Bloomberg’s Coronavirus Vaccine Tracker.
With Easter holidays starting at the end of March, Merkel’s chancellery is proposing mandatory quarantines and Covid tests for travelers returning to Germany, while allowing family visits within the country. A number of proposals haven’t yet been agreed on, indicating tense discussions will be needed to reach a deal.
For hard-hit areas in Germany, other possible curbs include nightly curfews until 5 a.m. and closures of schools and child care if teachers and pupils can’t get tested twice a week.