Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK

HEALTH

Macron promises new ‘regional decisions’ in fight against Covid-19 second wave

French president Emmanuel Macron has promised that decisions will have to be taken and new measures announced on Friday to try to stem the steep rise in Covid-19 infections across the country.

Published: 9 September 2020 17:38 CEST
Updated: 10 September 2020 12:05 CEST
Macron promises new 'regional decisions' in fight against Covid-19 second wave
AFP

Fears of a second wave of the epidemic have been rising in France, with the number of new cases surging even though the death rate remains low compared to spring highs.

On Thursday president Macron said the government would take the necessary decisions to give the public an idea of what the weeks ahead will hold.

The government's defence council are due to meet on Friday after which new measures are expected to be revealed.

Suggesting new and stricter measures will be brought in on a local level where the virus was circulating more rapidly Macron said the decisions would be taken on a regional basis (déclinées territorialement).

But he vowed not to concede to any kind of panic.

“What we need to do is to adapt to the evolution of the virus and try to slow its circulation with hygiene measures and adapting our social lives,” he said.

“We need to be able to continue to live, educate our children and care for other patients and illnesses and to have a social and economic life,” he added.

On Wednesday, health authorities reported a further 8, 577 new infections and Scientific Council head Jean-Francois Delfraissy told reporters that current infection rates were “worrying”.

The government may have to take “a certain number of tough decisions” he said, probably within 10 days.

“France is now at a worrying level which is not far behind Spain, with a lag of maybe two weeks, and much more severe than that of Italy,” Delfraissy told the news briefing, which was held online.

The fact that new cases had not yet swamped the health system might have created “a false sense of security”, Delfraissy said.

As well as over 8,500 new cases the number of intensive care patients suffering from coronavirus rose to 599 on Wednesday – a steep increase of 71 from the previous day.

In all 5,003 patients with Covid-19 are being treated in hospital in France, a rise of 386 on Tuesday.

Four regions in France are badly hit by the resurgence in infections – the greater Paris region of Ile-de-France, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur in the south, L'Occitanie in the south west and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes in the centre.

IN NUMBERS: How fast are France's Covid-19 rates increasing?

Scientific Council head Jean-Francois Delfraissy. Photo: AFP

'Exponential rise'

The warning from the Scientific Council comes a day after Prime Minister Jean Castex entered a seven-day period of self-isolation, having spent part of the weekend with the boss of the Tour de France who tested positive for Covid-19.

There was the danger of a “very rapid, exponential rise” in some places, Delfraissy said, singling out the French Riviera and Provence region.

Some French regions could see emergency services overwhelmed in coming weeks if no fresh measures were taken, he said, adding any new steps taken required two weeks to have an impact.

Local lockdowns?

The French President Emmanuel Macron and his ministers have repeatedly made it clear they are opposed to a repeat of the nationwide lockdown imposed in March due to the devastating impact it would have on the economy.

Authorities will consider possibility of introducing local lockdowns especially hard-hit areas such as the southern port-city Marseille, where spiralling coronavirus rates prompted an upsurge in the number of patients in hospitals and intensive care units.

Health Minister Olivier Veran said the situation would be a matter of discussion during Friday's defense council meeting and that nothing was ruled out for Marseille or any other area with rising rates.

“We will look at all indicators for the epidemic situation and make any proposals that could be necessary,” Veran said.

In Paris, critics have slammed bars for not complying with rules of compulsory face masks for anyone moving around their establishments, after videos emerged of unmasked people dancing closely together, even while nightclubs have been prohibited from reopening. 

Some called for police to ramp-up controls or even close establishments, a power local authorities achieved when the interior ministry bumped Paris up to a red zone of high level of coronavirus.

READ ALSO What does it mean if my département in France is a red zone?

 

The Scientific Council's Delfraissy, meanwhile, spoke out against closures of bars and bans on crowds, saying “that is not going to solve the problem”.

The government may also have to become more forceful in some areas about imposing confinement measures for infected people and those they have been in touch with, he said, although this was not for now an official recommendation.

People at high risk because of old age or health problems including diabetes, obesity and respiratory issues may require a protective “bubble” around them, according to the council which advises the government on its Covid-19 policy.

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.
For members

SCHOOLS

Are packed lunches really banned in French schools?

School children in France are entitled to a lunchtime meal of three, or even four courses – but what if you prefer to provide meals yourself? 

Published: 22 May 2024 12:24 CEST
Are packed lunches really banned in French schools?

French school meals are, famously, pretty good – children get a three or even four-course meal of properly prepared dishes and the menu (including cheese course) is usually published in the local town newsletter so everyone can see the types of meals being served.

The concept of a proper meal at lunchtime is an important one. “The diet of a school-age child is essential for their growth, mental development and learning abilities,” the French Education Ministry says in a preamble about school meals on its website. “It must be balanced, varied and distributed throughout the day: for example 20 percent of total energy in the morning, 40 percent at midday, 10 percent at four o’clock and 30 percent in the evening.”

And it’s not all about nutrition, the social aspect of sitting together and eating a meal is also important – the ministry continues: “Mealtime is an opportunity for students to relax and communicate. It should also be a time for discovery and enjoyment.”

All schools provide meals in a canteen and most pupils take up the opportunity – however it’s also possible for pupils to go home at lunchtime so that they can eat lunch with their parents.

The idea of taking in a packed lunch (panier-repas) is much less common in France – but is it actually banned?

The rules on lunch

At écoles (up to age 11), the local authority or établissement public de coopération intercommunale (EPCI) is responsible for providing quality school meals. This generally involves meals being provided via a central kitchen, and then delivered to the school’s kitchen, where it can be kept warm, or reheated as necessary.

The system is slightly different in collèges and lycées (attended by children aged 11 and up). In those establishments, catering falls into the purview of the wider département or region – and is routinely managed directly by individual establishments, which will have catering staff on site to prepare meals. Often, meal services are outsourced to private businesses, which operate the kitchens.

There are various rules and regulations in place regarding what food is offered, and how long a child has to eat – which is, in part, why the school lunch period is so long. Children must be allowed a 30-minute period to eat their meal, from the moment they sit down with it at the table. 

Then, they’re given time to play and relax before afternoon classes start.

READ ALSO What you need to know if your child is starting school in France

At a minimum lunch must include a main course with a side dish, a dairy-based product, as well as a starter and/or a dessert. Meals must also, the government says, be composed of 50 percent sustainable quality products (including 20 percent organic).

Some local authorities go further and serve only or mostly food that is organic, locally sourced or both.

Water and bread must be freely available, but salt and condiments can only be added in preparation – no sauce bottles or salt and pepper on the tables. 

Daily menus are generally available to view on school websites and many town newspapers or newsletters also publish them.

Parents pay a fee for the school lunch, which is calculated according to income and can be free in the case of low-income families.

Packed lunch

But what if your child doesn’t like the school lunches and you don’t have time to pick them up, cook a full lunch and take them back in the afternoon everyday? The obvious solution would seem to be to send them in with a packed lunch, as is common in the UK and USA.

In theory this is possible, but only in certain circumstances and with very strict rules and caveats. 

The Ministry, in a written response to a Senator’s question in 2019, said: “The use of packed lunches [home-supplied meals] by primary school students can provide an alternative to school meals. This method of catering is authorised in particular for children with a medically established food allergy or intolerance, requiring an adapted diet.”

READ ALSO How to enrol a non-French speaking child in school in France

It added: “the preparation and use of packed lunches in schools must follow certain rules. First of all, it is important to respect the cold chain”.

The cold chain is a term applied to food handling and distribution – it’s usually used by food-preparation businesses, but in the context of a packed lunch it means that food prepared at home must be kept in appropriately cool conditions until it is ready to eat. It would be the responsibility of parents to ensure that the food is delivered to school in containers appropriate for the job (ie an insulated cool bag).

Once at the school, it is up to whoever manages the kitchen to ensure that food is properly reheated. This becomes the sticking point at which many parents’ requests to send their children to school with a packed lunch, rather than go to the canteen, or eat back at home, are refused.

The reheating concern suggests that schools are also expecting parents to prepare a proper meal – rather than just throwing some sandwiches and a cereal bar into a bag.

Unless there’s a genuine and proven health reason for your child to eat a home-prepared meal, most parents will probably find the school won’t budge on this – even in cases of a strike by kitchen staff or lunch monitors.

READ ALSO Just how much do private schools in France cost?

The Ministry’s written response explains: “[A]s this is an optional public service, the municipality can justify its refusal to admit the children concerned by objective material and financial constraints, such as the need to equip itself with additional refrigerators, or for additional supervisory staff to supervise them during lunch.”

As well as the practicalities, for some schools this is an equality issue – because of the varied fee structure for school lunches what happens in effect is that richer parents are subsidising a good quality lunchtime meal for poorer students in the class; if everyone brought in a packed lunch and therefore stopped paying the fee, the lower-income kids would miss out. 

What about allergies or other health issues?

Children with allergies or other health issues that require a particular diet must be accommodated. An individual meal plan – known as a projet d’accueil individualisé (PAI) can be set up. More details (in French) are available here, on the government’s website.

It also becomes easier for parents to provide home-produced meals in such instances. As ever, it is up to the parents to ensure any meals are appropriately packaged and transported to school.

Not all schools

Some individual schools in France do permit pupils to bring in meals from home. They must be taken to school in an appropriate cold-storage container, and they will be stored in the kitchen area until they are needed, when meals will – if necessary – be reheated.

SHOW COMMENTS