Alain Berset will have to change his maxim for deconfinement. It could be summed up as follows: “As fast as possible and as fast as necessary.” The Federal Council is no longer on the brakes and decided on Wednesday to accelerate the recovery of the economy. Not only will all businesses be able to reopen on May 11, but also, and this is new, restaurants, museums and libraries. The liberal right rejoices. “We have been calling for many of these easing measures for weeks,” said the PLR.
Also read our editorial: “” Papa-State “, it’s over”
On the side of the Federal Council, no question of recognizing the slightest inflection. Everything was planned in advance, said President Simonetta Sommaruga. And Alain Berset boasts a bit when asked if the Federal Council has backed down under pressure from GastroSuisse and right-wing parties. “You know, the pressures, we are trained to endure them.” Not for him, the government is doing what it has always done. He adapts to the evolution of the virus while remaining “pragmatic and humble”.
This humility undoubtedly led him to note that the number of patients in intensive care fell continuously while another virus spreading at full speed in the country: that of partial unemployment. Economy Minister Guy Parmelin painted a rather bleak picture. Nearly two million employees are now partially unemployed. Or 37% of the working population. In the Jura and Ticino, it is worse since the rate reaches 50%. “A strong recession is looming. And getting out of confinement is the best possible economic policy, “insists the Vaudois, who, optimism pegged to the body, recalls that in Chinese the word” crisis “is designated by two symbols: danger but also luck.
How will this deconfinement spread? Here are the main steps.
May 11, 2020
Restaurants and leisure
The restaurants can reopen but under certain strict conditions: no more than four hosts or a family per table and a space of 2 meters or a separating element between each group. The branch will have to present a protection plan by May 11. “This is good news,” said Casimir Platzer, president of GastroSuisse. The industry has a new perspective. ” What about partial unemployment? “As soon as you have the opportunity to open and work, you must apply a protection concept,” explains Guy Parmelin. If part of the staff can no longer be mobilized because of this concept, recourse to partial unemployment remains possible. ” In terms of leisure, museums, libraries and archives will also reopen sooner than expected. Sunday sports training in small groups of five may resume. Elite athletes will be able to train again with more than five.
Shops and seniors
All stores and markets will be allowed to reopen, also relying on a sector-specific protection plan. And for those over 65 and vulnerable people, will the OFSP lift its recommendation not to go to these places? “The more we know about the virus, the more we can differentiate between someone over 65 who has serious preexisting illnesses for example or another. We are in a situation where it becomes possible to see things a little differently, ”Alain Berset cautiously answers.
Compulsory schools
Alain Berset assumes that classes will reopen on May 11: “In some cantons, it is obvious. In others, there are more debates. ” It is written very small in its ordinance: “The Cantons decide if face-to-face teaching takes place.” To do this, in any case, the OFSP protection plan published on Wednesday must be applied. It leaves a good margin of flexibility. “We cannot give an answer to every individual situation. It is up to the Cantons and Communes to find the appropriate solutions, ”says Simonetta Sommaruga. According to this plan, it will not be necessary to fix rules of distance between the pupils, but between the teacher and the pupil, as much as possible. Wearing a mask will not be compulsory. Covid delegate Daniel Koch once again wanted to reassure children: “They can get infected in some cases, but it’s very rare. The danger for teachers, parents who are at risk or the little ones is slim, ”he says. And if a student is infected, he will be isolated and his close contacts quarantined.
May 27, 2020
Ban on assembly
Demonstrations of more than 1,000 people remain banned until the end of August. And below? “We will look into this issue on May 27,” says Alain Berset. During this session, depending on the situation on the front of the Covid-19, the limit of five could be relaxed for entry into force on June 8. It is also on May 27 that the Federal Council should decide to end the extraordinary state of affairs which gives it a lot of political power.
From June 8, 2020
Gyms and exams
The Federal Council has not decided to cancel the maturity exams. It leaves the Cantons free hands to decide whether they want to organize one or not. He just asks them to act quickly. Gymnasiums, vocational schools and universities can fully reopen. As of May 11, they can organize courses for up to five people.
Leisure, tourism and religions
Theaters, cinemas, zoological and botanical gardens and swimming pools will reopen. Religious services can resume to the relief of families. On the tourism side, the ski lifts can climb the mountains again. A late deadline that Sepp Odermatt, the acting director of Swiss ski lifts does not understand. “We are perfectly able to reopen the facilities in accordance with hygienic measures.”
Big federal votes on September 27
The population will be able to vote again at the federal level as of September 27. And the government has planned a copious, even indigestible menu. Five votes are decided: the initiative to limit immigration to the SVP, the referendum on the law on hunting, a new tax deduction for children, the introduction of paternity leave and the acquisition of new planes of fight.
Maurer lets go in an interview
Usually a federal councilor is silent when he does not agree with a decision of the government college. But Finance Minister Ueli Maurer has probably had to swallow too many snakes in recent weeks. He therefore let the steam escape in an interview with the “NZZ” which spoils in the political world.
What does the UDC Minister of Federal Finance say? First of all, he “doesn’t feel good about himself anymore”. Professional unrest due to the size of the Confederation’s deficit, which this year could be between 30 and 50 billion francs. Ueli Maurer was counting on the parliament to tighten the valves next week. Alas, he finds that elected officials want to spend even more than the government.
Was this whole economic crisis necessary? Ueli Maurer seems to doubt it. He criticized in hollow the strategy of containment of the Federal Council, which closed the businesses. “It seems to me that we are telling people to stay home because heavy rain is expected. Maybe it would be enough to tell them to take an umbrella and put on good boots. ”
Ueli Maurer is also speaking out against lost funds aid to all companies. He would prefer that one limit oneself to lend money, except for cases of rigor. He believes that filling the hole in federal finances will take at least 25 years. He therefore proposed tapping into the profits of the SNB. Which will make the Cantons scream, which are receiving two thirds of it for now. Finally, he summons the President of the Confederation, Simonetta Sommaruga, by demolishing any economic recovery plan. It ends with a blow to the left, no special coronavirus tax, and another blow to the right, no tax cuts to revive the economic machine.
Arthur Grosjean
Created: 04.29.2020, 11:01 p.m.
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