Covid-19 measures | December 11, 2020
The cantonal government welcomes the introduction of additional and stricter corona protective measures. The government council is even specifically tightening these regulations. However, he also demands that the Federal Council urgently reactivate the Covid loans. And is critical.
The Bernese health director Pierre Alain Schnegg has to hold a few meetings with his government colleagues in the next few days.Foto: Keystone, Anthony Anex
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In addition to the curfew of 7 p.m. for restaurants defined by the Federal Council, the canton of Bern has an upper limit of 50 visitors per restaurant, as the government council announced on Friday evening. In addition, bars and clubs in the canton of Bern must remain closed. The regulation for the markets also remains in place. This means that the consumption of food and drinks in the vicinity of markets remains prohibited.
Bern does not benefit from easing
On Friday, the Federal Council left a back door open for cantons with better Corona values so that their restaurants can stay open until 11 p.m. The canton of Bern does not currently meet these requirements and cannot benefit from the relaxation. Other areas, however, can breathe a sigh of relief thanks to the federal solution. The museums, for example, can reopen. “Finally art again” read a media release from the Kunstmuseum Bern and the Zentrum Paul Klee on Friday evening. The two institutions want to resume operations on December 15th. These measures in the canton of Bern that go beyond the federal ordinance apply until January 22, 2021. The other measures in the canton of Bern that are limited until December 14, 2020 will be repealed when the new federal regulation comes into force tomorrow Saturday.
Reactivation of the Covid loans is urgent
The government council is aware that the measures taken by the federal government will continue to severely restrict social life and that the strict conditions will further exacerbate the tense situation of companies and businesses, writes the government. For this reason, too, it is important to her to emphasize again that the efficient and only quickly effective way to support the companies concerned is to reactivate the Covid loans. “In view of the urgency of hardship aid, the Federal Council should reactivate the Covid-19 loan instrument as soon as the urgent change in the law comes into force. This would significantly reduce the great time pressure in the cantons for the implementation of hardship cases and best guarantee a targeted and low-abuse implementation in the cantons, ”writes the cantonal government.
In the opinion of the government council, the hardship solution of the federal government is suitable to be integrated into the Covid-19 credit system. Companies should be given the opportunity to apply for a hardship case parallel to the acquisition of a Covid-19 loan, in which they can apply to the cantons for partial waiver or repayment of an awarded Covid-19 loan. The hardship ordinance of the Federal Council should be adapted accordingly and should allow this additional option.
Government council is critical
“The additional funds now spoken by the Federal Council and the adjustments will exacerbate the already major challenges of implementation in the Canton of Bern,” the government council continues. Time delays and resource bottlenecks are to be expected. Because even if the changes are well-intentioned by the Federal Council, the concrete implementation is difficult and only “can be implemented with massive conflicting goals”. The government can now only continue work on the cantonal ordinance with uncertainty and it will have to make further adjustments to the procedure. In this context, she will probably deal with the regulation at various meetings next week.
Continuous monitoring of the development of the pandemic
The coming holidays would show how the pandemic is developing. The government will continue to closely monitor the epidemiological situation and reserve the right to order new cantonal measures at short notice in the event of an unfavorable development of the corona cases and – associated with this – a high burden on the health system.
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