BERLIN/THE HAGUE: Germany needs further coronavirus restrictions to combat a record surge in infections and “get through this winter,” the country’s likely next leader Olaf Scholz said Thursday, calling a national meeting to decide new curbs.
The EU’s most populous country recorded 50,196 new cases in the past 24 hours, according to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) health agency — the first time the figure has exceeded 50,000.
Infections and deaths have been climbing steeply since mid-October, in an outbreak blamed on Germany’s relatively low vaccination rate of just over 67 percent.
After getting through the first three onslaughts of the pandemic better than many of its neighbors, the current fourth wave seemed to take the nation by surprise.
At nearly 250 infections per 100,000 people, Germany is faring much worse than France (94), Italy (73) or Spain (41), according to the Statista data agency.
Scholz’s remarks came as he faced criticism for his relative silence, with detractors saying he was consumed by his Social Democrats’ bid to form a ruling coalition with the Greens and liberal FDP following September’s election.
Presenting proposed measures drafted by the three parties in parliament, Scholz said new restrictions were necessary to “get through this winter.”
“What we need now is for the country to pull together in one direction,” he said, also urging more Germans to get vaccinated.
The measures proposed by the incoming coalition parties include restricting access to certain facilities to those who are vaccinated or have recovered from the disease — a system known as 2G in Germany.
They also want to tighten testing requirements at workplaces and reintroduce free rapid antigen tests, a measure that had been in place over the summer but was abandoned in mid-October.
Outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel has called for urgent action and described the rise in infections as “dramatic.”
Health Minister Jens Spahn has said the country is facing a “massive pandemic of the unvaccinated” and has urged as many Germans as possible to get a booster vaccine.
Meanwhile, The Netherlands on Thursday reported a record daily number of new Covid cases, as the government considered re-imposing restrictions to curb the spike in infections.
The 16,364 new cases over the previous 24 hours, announced by the RIVM public health institute, smashed the previous record of 12,997 set on December 20 last year.
Twenty-six people had also died over the last 24 hours, the agency said.
Prime Minister Mark Rutte will hold a press conference to announce fresh measures on Friday, with local media reporting that experts have advised a two-week “light lockdown.”
The restrictions could include canceling large events, closing cinemas and theaters and making bars and restaurants shut earlier in the evening.
Schools would however remain open.