The Prime Minister announced the news in front of the senators on Thursday. A day before, he had revealed in an interview with Le Parisien that the measure was to be applied by 1 August.
The clock is ticking: the wearing of masks in enclosed public spaces will be mandatory starting next week; Prime Minister Jean Castex declared Thursday in his general policy statement to the senators.
During a meeting with the editors of Le Parisien the day before, the Prime Minister had announced the date of 1 August for the entry into force of this obligation. “I proposed that the wearing of masks be intensified and, as proposed by the president of the Republic; it will be made compulsory from August 1 in shops and places receiving the public,” he said. But voices were raised to criticize this delay. If wearing a mask helps slow the spread of the epidemic, why wait?
In Mayenne, the wearing of masks has become mandatory since Wednesday in six municipalities including Laval, the prefecture city. The prefect of the department signed an order on Wednesday with immediate effect. Mayenne, which has several Covid-19 outbreaks, had slightly exceeded the alert threshold with 50.1 new cases per 100,000 inhabitants detected in seven days.
Definition of “enclosed public places”
For the national territory, however, the government spokesman recalled the “legal and technical work in progress”. Will this obligation be extended to companies? “They must manage on a case-by-case basis, depending on the situation”, the Prime Minister replied. In addition, it is necessary on the one hand to define “enclosed public places”, but also to prepare the implementation of this decision on the ground. Who will be able to punish? At what level? Will the fine be systematically imposed on the client or on the owner of the premises? For all these questions, the ball is in the court of the Interior,” the Ministry of Health is told.
Source: Le Figaro
