Flemish PM believes that existing measures to combat COVID-19 will remain in force beyond 5 April
The Flemish Prime Minister Jan Jambon (nationalist) says that he believes that the National Security Council will decide to extend the measures currently in force to curb the spread of COVID-19 beyond 5 April. The National Security Council will meet on Friday afternoon to assess the situation with regard to COVID-19 and decide what if any additional measures will be necessary to curb its spread and whether the measures already in force should be extended beyond 5 April.
Mr Jambon made his comments on VRT television’s chat show Vandaag. He told viewers that “We will look at whether the measures already taken are being adhered to. We will also look at whether certain aspects need further clarification. Each measure has its boundaries and sometimes people test these boundaries. Experts will tell us whether the measures suffice. It isn’t the politicians that decide which measures need to be taken".
The Flemish Prime Minister was reluctant to make any firm predictions ahead of Friday afternoon’s meeting. “The experts have always predicted that we would move towards the peak this week. The measures that we have taken were intended to level the peak”, Mr Jambon said.
"If a thousand people become sick spread over ten weeks our health system can cope. But if they all become ill in one day it would not be able to cope. This is the strategy that has been thought out by the experts so that our health system can cope”.
Mr Jambon added that the number of people requiring intensive care treatment is the most import figure to watch. The Flemish PM said that there are currently no intensive care capacity issues.
Jan Jambon wouldn’t be drawn as to whether the measures currently in force would be tightened. “The experts will meet tomorrow morning. In the afternoon we will be given a report that could contain proposals for stricter measures. I don’t think that the measures currently in force will be relaxed. It is reasonable to assume that they will be extended beyond 5 April".