First modification:
The vaccination pass will not be implemented on January 15, as planned. French deputies and senators did not reach an agreement this Thursday during discussions on the version of the bill that replaces the health pass to convert it into a vaccination pass. The text will return to the Assembly and then to the Senate. In case of lack of agreement, the Assembly has the last word.
After more than four hours of debate this Thursday, January 13 at the Bourbon Palace, the French deputies and senators almost reached an agreement on the famous text that will establish the vaccination pass.
However, at the last moment, a tweet from the right-wing deputy Bruno Retailleau, congratulating the Senate on the victory, changed the tone of the negotiations and ended the debate, without reaching an agreement. The text will be reviewed by the Assembly before returning to the Senate. The Assembly will have the last word in case of disagreement.
The bill provides for the change from the health pass to the vaccination pass, preventing the access of the unvaccinated to various spaces such as trains, restaurants or cinemas. Until now, with the health pass, people who had not yet been immunized against Covid-19 could circulate with a negative test.
The CMP south #passevaccinal a donné raison au #Sénat, c’est la victoire du bon sens. Les senateurs ont obtainu de nombreuses clarifications et simplifications. The past is destined to protect the French and the other people… in the wake of Emmanuel Macron
— Bruno Retailleau (@BrunoRetailleau) January 13, 2022
When the law is approved, something that is expected to happen around January 20, the negative test will no longer be sufficient and only proof of vaccinations or of having passed Covid-19 in the last six months will be valid.
Disagreements between the Government and the Senate
This Wednesday, the Senate, with a conservative majority, approved a law text that modified the proposal voted by the Assembly the previous week, making changes that were not in line with the Government.
Indeed, the vaccination pass could depend on the number of hospitalizations for Covid-19 and would automatically disappear below 10,000 hospitalized patients. Minors between the ages of 12 and 17 would not need to have a vaccination pass either and would continue to use the health pass. It would also prevent bar and restaurant patrons from being able to verify the identity of the holders of the vaccination passes to prevent fraud.
This Thursday, France again exceeded 300,000 daily infections by Covid-19 and, in the last 24 hours, 227 deaths from the virus were recorded. In addition, 24,154 patients are also currently hospitalized for the virus.
This same day, the teachers went on strike to protest against the repeated changes to the anticovid rules. According to the Ministry of Education, almost 40% of teachers participated in the strike and many schools had to close. In a few days, the rules for welcoming students in schools were modified three times.
With AFP and EFE
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