FRANCE. President orders nationwide lockdown from October 30

France will go back into a nationwide lockdown starting this week to try to contain the COVID-19 epidemic.

The new measures which come into force on Friday and will last until Dec. 1st – will mean people have to stay in their homes except to buy essential goods, seek medical attention, or use their daily one-hour allocation of exercise.

Anyone leaving their home will have to carry a special document justifying being outside, which can be checked by police.

Restaurants, cafes and shops not selling essential goods will have to close down for at least the next two weeks.

In France, people will still be allowed to go to work if their employer deems it impossible for them to do the job from home, and – in a departure from the previous lockdown in March – schools will remain open.

Depending on the evolution of the outbreak in France, authorities are likely to modify, at concise notice.