France's President, Emmanuel Macron, set his sights on May 11 for easing the coronavirus lockdown, but said the French people would remain behind barriers and closed borders for months for years to come.
In a televised speech on Monday night, watched by 36.7 million people for an audience share of 94 per cent, Mr Macron said some institutions, such as schools, could reopen but many safeguards would remain.
"On May 11, it will be a question of allowing as many people as possible to return to work, to restart our industry, our businesses and our services," he said.
But French borders would largely remain closed “until further notice”.
As a result, the country’s headline summer event, the cycling Tour de France, was postponed on Tuesday.
Additional support would be made available for the tourism industry and others that faced a prolonged shutdown.
Mr Macron admitted to failures in sourcing life-saving equipment and indicated that the post-crisis economy would need to tilt away from globalisation.
“We will have to rebuild our economy stronger in order to produce and give full hope to our employees, our entrepreneurs, to keep our financial independence,” he said.
“We will have to rebuild French agricultural, health, industrial and technological independence and ensure more strategic autonomy for Europe.”
Mr Macron's announcement echoed forecasts from economists that developed economies would emerge from the crisis keen to rebuild domestic supply chains.
"The direct disruption of the pandemic has highlighted the need to secure critical supplies like food, medical supplies and core inputs [such as power sources] and components," a briefing note from ING Bank read.
"On top of this, the societal and cultural shock of the pandemic is likely to spark the development of local networks and communities.
"In this respect, accelerated development of new technologies such as 3D printing may facilitate the localisation of production."
French officials on Tuesday said that people should not plan on booking summer holidays.
“Without a guarantee of being able to protect the French by reopening the borders, we will not do so," said Christophe Castaner, Minister of Interior.
"I would advise my family – I don't have to advise the French on their vacation – not to rush into reservations, especially in foreign countries."
It was likely that those given permission to leave home would have to wear masks. Even the reopening of schools would be staggered and partial.
Jean-Michel Blanquer, Minister of Education, said the return to class on May 11 would be an opportunity to teach children how to stay safe in the face of disease.
“It is obvious that everything will not happen overnight,” Mr Blanquer said. "Not everyone will be back on May 11, that's for sure.
"We can imagine that part of the lessons are done in small groups and the rest is done online for high school students, for example.”
A mixed picture of the coronavirus pandemic was still emerging around Europe, with some countries, including Italy, experimenting with opening up and others extending emergency measures.
The number of daily coronavirus-related deaths increased in Spain, where another 567 deaths were recorded in 24 hours, taking the epidemic total to 18,056.
Official figures showed deaths involving Covid-19 in England were running 15 per cent higher than the number reported by the National Health Service.
The Office for National Statistics said 5,979 deaths up to April 3 had been registered by April 11. That compared with the 5,186 reported by NHS England.
Meanwhile, coronavirus cases in Germany registered their smallest increase so far this month as the infection curve appeared to be flattening.
Germany reported a drop in new cases for a fifth day in a row, lifting hopes that the peak of the crisis has been reached.
The daily increase in infections of 2,218 was the lowest this month and took the total to 130,072, figures from Johns Hopkins University showed.
Economy Minister Peter Altmaier said Germany might soon decide to lift some restrictions.
“We have seen some successes the past few days,” Mr Altmeier said.
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%3Cp%3EDeveloper%3A%20Aspyr%0D%3Cbr%3EPublisher%3A%20Aspyr%0D%3Cbr%3EConsole%3A%20Nintendo%20Switch%2C%20PlayStation%204%26amp%3B5%2C%20PC%20and%20Xbox%20series%20X%2FS%0D%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Cricket World Cup League Two
Teams
Oman, UAE, Namibia
Al Amerat, Muscat
Results
Oman beat UAE by five wickets
UAE beat Namibia by eight runs
Namibia beat Oman by 52 runs
UAE beat Namibia by eight wickets
Fixtures
Saturday January 11 - UAE v Oman
Sunday January 12 – Oman v Namibia
History's medical milestones
1799 - First small pox vaccine administered
1846 - First public demonstration of anaesthesia in surgery
1861 - Louis Pasteur published his germ theory which proved that bacteria caused diseases
1895 - Discovery of x-rays
1923 - Heart valve surgery performed successfully for first time
1928 - Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin
1953 - Structure of DNA discovered
1952 - First organ transplant - a kidney - takes place
1954 - Clinical trials of birth control pill
1979 - MRI, or magnetic resonance imaging, scanned used to diagnose illness and injury.
1998 - The first adult live-donor liver transplant is carried out
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Rock in a Hard Place: Music and Mayhem in the Middle East
Orlando Crowcroft
Zed Books
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
The specs: 2019 Mini Cooper
Price, base: Dh141,740 (three-door) / Dh165,900 (five-door)
Engine: 1.5-litre four-cylinder (Cooper) / 2.0-litre four-cylinder (Cooper S)
Power: 136hp @ 4,500rpm (Cooper) / 192hp @ 5,000rpm (Cooper S)
Torque: 220Nm @ 1,480rpm (Cooper) / 280Nm @ 1,350rpm (Cooper S)
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 4.8L to 5.4L / 100km
What are NFTs?
Are non-fungible tokens a currency, asset, or a licensing instrument? Arnab Das, global market strategist EMEA at Invesco, says they are mix of all of three.
You can buy, hold and use NFTs just like US dollars and Bitcoins. “They can appreciate in value and even produce cash flows.”
However, while money is fungible, NFTs are not. “One Bitcoin, dollar, euro or dirham is largely indistinguishable from the next. Nothing ties a dollar bill to a particular owner, for example. Nor does it tie you to to any goods, services or assets you bought with that currency. In contrast, NFTs confer specific ownership,” Mr Das says.
This makes NFTs closer to a piece of intellectual property such as a work of art or licence, as you can claim royalties or profit by exchanging it at a higher value later, Mr Das says. “They could provide a sustainable income stream.”
This income will depend on future demand and use, which makes NFTs difficult to value. “However, there is a credible use case for many forms of intellectual property, notably art, songs, videos,” Mr Das says.
MATCH INFO
Southampton 0
Manchester City 1 (Sterling 16')
Man of the match: Kevin de Bruyne (Manchester City)
The 10 Questions
- Is there a God?
- How did it all begin?
- What is inside a black hole?
- Can we predict the future?
- Is time travel possible?
- Will we survive on Earth?
- Is there other intelligent life in the universe?
- Should we colonise space?
- Will artificial intelligence outsmart us?
- How do we shape the future?
T20 World Cup Qualifier, Muscat
UAE FIXTURES
Friday February 18: v Ireland
Saturday February 19: v Germany
Monday February 21: v Philippines
Tuesday February 22: semi-finals
Thursday February 24: final
Red Sparrow
Dir: Francis Lawrence
Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Joel Egerton, Charlotte Rampling, Jeremy Irons
Three stars
What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
England v South Africa Test series:
First Test: at Lord's, England won by 211 runs
Second Test: at Trent Bridge, South Africa won by 340 runs
Third Test: at The Oval, July 27-31
Fourth Test: at Old Trafford, August 4-8
