Caution guides EU's exit from lockdowns

Bloc's chief lays down checklist for countries on lifting restrictions

The European Union on Wednesday announced guidance for how member states can begin phasing out the lockdowns imposed to counter the coronavirus, with the bloc's chief underscoring the need for a cautious and coordinated approach.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the main preconditions for an easing of controls were a significant decrease in infections within a country, sufficient capacity in its health system and the capability for adequate monitoring and surveillance.

"In general, we recommend a gradual approach and every action should be continuously monitored," said Von der Leyen, adding that any decision to ease restrictions should be based on evidence that there has been a sustained drop in the number of cases.

The published guidelines also note that an increase in infections is inevitable once restrictions are eased and that lockdowns may need to be reimposed if the disease begins to spread.

The virus had infected 852,174 people and claimed 85,926 lives in Europe as of Thursday, according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Wednesday that Germany will take small steps out of its lockdown with the partial reopening of shops next week and schools from May 4. In doing so, it would become the first major European nation to take on the delicate task of reopening without triggering a new wave of infections.

Retailers whose shops are up to 800 square meters will be allowed to open next week, along with car and bicycle dealers, and bookstores, though they must practice strict social distancing and hygiene rules. With the reopening of schools from May 4, priority will be given to final-year students.

However, a ban on large public events will remain in place until Aug 31, and the federal and state governments "strongly recommended" Germans wear face masks on public transport and when shopping.

Also on Wednesday, Germany's Ministry of the Interior said that border controls would be extended by 20 days until May 4.

"We have to proceed with extreme caution," Merkel told reporters in Berlin.

Germany had reported 130,450 cases and 3,569 deaths, data from the Robert Koch Institute for infectious diseases showed on Thursday.

Deaths in nursing homes

In France, deaths jumped by 1,438 to 17,167－the biggest single-day increase－as a number of nursing homes reported cumulative tolls following the Easter weekend, Health Ministry Director Jerome Salomon said on Wednesday.

But he said for the first time since the start of the country's outbreak that the number of people in hospital for COVID-19 had fallen, by 513 to 31,779, on Wednesday. The number of people in intensive care units dropped for the seventh day in a row.

Salomon said the COVID-19 pandemic is still highly active and called on French people to strictly respect confinement measures.

The French Defense Ministry said on Wednesday that 668 crew members of the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle and accompanying vessels had tested positive. The carrier returned to its base in the southern port of Toulon on Sunday.

The ministry said that 1,767 Navy personnel had been tested, most of them sailors from the carrier. Among those infected with the virus, 31 are in hospitals, including one in intensive care.

Britain's Labour Party leader Keir Starmer urged the government to publish an exit strategy from the nation's lockdown this week, warning that "silent pressures on families and communities across the country cannot be underestimated".

Daily figures from the Department of Health and Social Care on Wednesday showed that the UK hospital coronavirus death toll had increased by 761 to 12,868.

Health Minister Matt Hancock said on Thursday the outbreak in the UK is starting to peak, but that it was still too early to lift the lockdown because the virus would "run rampant" if the government eased social distancing measures.

Jonathan Powell in London and agencies contributed to this story.