“I’m sorry to take this drastic step,” he said in the direction of the vaccinated, meaning all those “who have done everything right, who have vaccinated themselves, who wear the mask, who keep their distance and who have gone to freshen up “. That is an “imposition”. And he was also self-critical: “It is clear that no crisis management is error-free.”
In the press conference in the morning Schallenberg had indirectly blamed the FPÖ and other political forces and their support for the unvaccinated: “This is actually an attack on our health system.” Mückstein had already expressed his apology at this press conference: “Unfortunately we are too as a federal government lagged behind our claims. I would like to apologize for that. “
Federal Chancellor Schallenberg (ÖVP) on the lockdown
Federal Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg (ÖVP) speaks in the studio about the measures announced on Friday: From Monday, a nationwide lockdown will apply to everyone and from February everyone will be vaccinated.
Vain hope for a turnaround
The ÖVP had long resisted measures for vaccinated and convalescent people. According to the Federal Chancellor in the ZIB2, the voices of the experts and the calls for help from the health staff were heard. “We had the hope of a trend reversal and that the measures would work faster and more.” But that was not enough.
“We may have trusted for too long that people would do what is necessary to protect themselves and others,” said Schallenberg when asked whether the low willingness to vaccinate was not “homemade”. With the exception of Upper Austria, the current general lockdown should end on December 12, except for those who have not been vaccinated. Schallenberg: “There is a political agreement for this and I act accordingly.” Schallenberg could not name an end date for unvaccinated people in the ZIB2.
“Let’s not be divided up”
Previously, Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen had addressed the population. The decision of the government and the governors came late, but was correct in view of the drastic development in the hospitals, said Van der Bellen in a television address on ORF that evening. He warned of a split. There is a great risk that “the trenches will become even deeper”: “We must not allow that. We belong Together. We condition each other. We are all Austria. “
It is now a matter of protecting and saving people: “The coming weeks will be very demanding of us. We all have to do everything we can to ensure that the fourth wave is broken and the next one can be prevented, ”Van der Bellen appealed to the population.
Speech by the Federal President
Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen addresses the population on the occasion of the lockdown in the fourth wave of the CoV pandemic. He asks the Austrians to form a “strong community based on solidarity”.
“Please do we stop?”
In this sense, the Federal President spoke of the fundamental rights and freedoms that each and every individual has in a democratic society. “But we also have duties – to act, not to look the other way, to protect the community,” said Van der Bellen.
“In the circumstances we are in now, one of those duties becomes vaccination, which can help prevent further waves.” Nothing gets better now if we point our fingers at each other and direct our anger against them. Please let us stop. “
In an interview with ZIB2, the political scientist Peter Filzmaier asked the government to put political considerations aside and to switch to crisis communication mode and thus speak with one voice. The contradicting communication had “seriously damaged the government’s credibility”.
Filzmaier: “The damage is enormous”
Political scientist Peter Filzmaier classifies the government’s communications in the past few days. Many contradictions in the announcement of CoV measures would have caused enormous damage.
Evaluation after ten days
The new tightening starts on Monday. Then the catering, cultural and event industries as well as retail close apart from the shops for daily needs. Exit restrictions apply from midnight to midnight for everyone and not just for those who have not been vaccinated. Schools and kindergartens should remain open. There should be a compulsory vaccination from February.
A home office recommendation applies to all employees, 3-G is still mandatory in the workplaces. An FFP2 mask is mandatory in all closed rooms, including at the workplace. Events in the field of top-class sport can continue to take place, but from Monday only without spectators.
The lockdown should apply around the clock and in a first step for ten days. After the general lockdown, restrictions on the unvaccinated will remain, according to the government’s current plan. The situation will be evaluated after ten days. In Upper Austria, the lockdown will last until December 17th. Then a decision should be made on how to proceed – more on this in ooe.ORF.at. Salzburg does not want to commit to an exact date.
Lockdown and mandatory vaccination for everyone
The fourth nationwide lockdown since the beginning of the pandemic is coming: As Federal Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg (ÖVP) and Health Minister Wolfgang Mückstein (Greens) announced in a press conference on Friday morning, the catering, cultural and event industries as well as retail (except shops for daily needs) will close on Monday. Schools and kindergartens should remain open. There is also a mandatory vaccination from February.
Open questions about compulsory vaccination
A general vaccination requirement is being prepared immediately and should apply from February 1st. Anyone who still does not want to be vaccinated faces administrative penalties. “For a long time there was a consensus in this country that we do not want vaccinations to be compulsory,” said Schallenberg. “For a long time, maybe too long” it was assumed that it would be possible to achieve a high vaccination rate even without an obligation. Now you have to face reality. There are open questions that experts now have to look at, said Schallenberg in ZIB2. These include, for example, the effects on the workplace and the age from which the mandatory vaccination should apply.
“We worked with an incentive system,” said Mückstein. There has already been an initial conversation with the social partners. Constitutional lawyers have already signaled that a general compulsory vaccination is possible. According to Mückstein, it guarantees a “proper review period”. From now on – as in Vienna, for example – all vaccinated persons should have the opportunity to have the third vaccination after four months.
“No beauty award”
The Tyrolean governor Günther Platter (ÖVP), also chairman of the governor’s conference, emphasized that the health system is on the verge of resilience. It is important that the federal and state governments pull together. He also pointed out that in addition to the governing parties ÖVP and Greens, the SPÖ was also on board in this agreement.
The Mayor of Vienna Michael Ludwig (SPÖ) said that the decision was made “in solidarity with the federal states of Salzburg and Upper Austria” to agree to national regulations. “We all know we will not get a beauty award,” said Ludwig about the unpopular measure of the lockdown. It is clear to him that the lockdown is a drastic measure for many industries.
The Vorarlberg Governor Markus Wallner (ÖVP) said that it was important to combine the lockdown with a later compulsory vaccination “so as not to stumble into a new lockdown every three or four months” – more on this in vorarlberg.ORF.at.
Economic aid and special care
Finance minister Gernot Blümel (ÖVP) and ÖVP labor minister Martin Kocher announced in a press conference of the economy for the lockdown period a continuation of the economic aid. “We use the tried and tested instrument case. This means that we are ready to go quickly and the entrepreneurs get their money faster, ”says Blümel. However, all funded companies would have to adhere to the CoV provisions, otherwise the aid must be repaid.
The CoV short-time work applies until the end of the year, so it covers the lockdown that has now been announced, said Kocher. How it will continue after that is still open. As of Monday, employees who fall into the risk group due to health restrictions will again have the opportunity to obtain a risk certificate and, if necessary, to be exempted.
The right to exemption for pregnant women in body-related professions is still upheld anyway, and the special care time can also be used unchanged if a child is quarantined or falls ill with Covid-19, said Kocher. The minister “recommends” companies to use home office.
“Setback” for the cultural sector
Due to the new lockdown that will apply from Monday, aid will also be extended and increased in culture, announced the Greens State Secretary for Culture, Andrea Mayer. She described the situation for the art and culture industry as a “renewed setback that cannot be glossed over”.
Specifically, the NPO fund will be extended until the first quarter of 2022 and endowed with an additional 125 million euros. Aid under the social insurance scheme for artists will also be extended beyond November until at least the first quarter of the coming year and increased from 150 to 175 million euros. During the lockdown months, 1,000 euros instead of 600 euros are paid out for each application.
Solidarity from SPÖ-led countries
Salzburg and Upper Austria had already declared a lockdown from Monday on Thursday. There was previously resistance to an Austria-wide lockdown in the ranks of the ÖVP: Chancellor Schallenberg had repeatedly said that there would no longer be any restrictions on those who had been vaccinated. The ÖVP-led states of Lower Austria, Tyrol and Styria had not been ready in the past few days to follow the example of Salzburg and Upper Austria.
The SPÖ-governed states of Carinthia, Vienna and Burgenland had shown solidarity with Upper Austria and Salzburg. Even before the outcome of the negotiations, they had agreed to a lockdown for everyone, although at least Vienna and Burgenland have a much better grip on the fourth wave.