Coronavirus: Germany may see 4 to 5 more months of restrictions

Economy Minister Peter Altmaier said Germany may see four to five more months of coronavirus restrictions, AFP reported.

The remark dashes hopes of a quick end to a partial lockdown introduced two weeks ago, AFP said.

“The infection numbers are still far too high — much higher even than a fortnight ago,” Altmaier told the Bild an Sonntag newspaper ahead of a government meeting on Monday to assess the progress of the restrictions.

Germany went into partial lockdown in early November, closing bars, restaurants, gyms and other recreational facilities but keeping schools and shops open.

The number of new infections per day has since slowed but remains high, with a record of more than 23,000 reported on Friday.

“We will have to live with considerable precautions and restrictions for at least the next four to five months,” Altmaier said in the AFP report.

“Many people are now understandably hoping for a loosening (of restrictions), that restaurants or cinemas will reopen. But in view of the still far too high infection rates, we have little room for maneuver.”

The restrictions agreed by Chancellor Angela Merkel and the leaders of Germany’s 16 states are provisionally in place until the end of November.

But the leaders will meet again on Monday to decide whether to extend them or to introduce sharper restrictions.