Italy moves to ease Europe’s longest lockdown

Italy has outlined plans to ease the restrictions it imposed seven weeks ago to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said the measures would be relaxed from 4 May, with people being allowed to visit their relatives in small numbers.

Parks, factories, and building sites will reopen, but schools will not restart classes until September.

Roman Catholic bishops have written to Mr. Conte to protest against the continued ban on church services.

It comes as the country recorded its lowest daily death toll in weeks.

There were 260 new virus-related deaths on Sunday, the lowest daily figure since 14 March. The total is now at 26,644, Europe’s highest official toll.

Italy has confirmed 197,675 cases of the virus, according to data from Johns Hopkins University, which is tracking the disease globally.

Other countries like Switzerland and Spain are also relaxing their measures.

The number of cases in Italy has been falling, and authorities now believe the contagion rate – the number of people each person with the virus infects – is low enough to justify a cautious easing of curbs.

What has been announced?

Speaking on television on Sunday, Mr. Conte outlined how the country would begin “Phase Two” of lifting its coronavirus lockdown. The measures include:

• People will be allowed to move around their own regions – but not between different regions
• Funerals are set to resume, but with a maximum of 15 people attending, and ideally to be carried out outdoors
• Individual athletes can resume training, and people can do sports not only in the vicinity of their homes but in wider areas
• Bars and restaurants will reopen for takeaway service from 4 May – not just delivery as now – but food must be consumed at home or in an office
• Hairdressers, beauty salons, bars, and restaurants are expected to reopen for dine-in service from 1 June
• More retail shops not already opened under the earliest easing measures will reopen on 18 May along with museums and libraries
• Sports teams will also be able to hold group training from 18 May

There was no announcement on the possibility of Italy’s premier football league Serie A resuming, even behind closed doors.

Mr. Conte stressed that social distancing measures would need to continue for months to come, and said church services would remain banned. He urged people to stay a meter (3ft) away from each other.

“If we do not respect the precautions the curve will go up, the deaths will increase, and we will have irreversible damage to our economy,” the prime minister said. “If you love Italy, keep your distance.”

He also said his government would cap the price of face masks at 50 cents ($0.54; £0.44).

In a letter to the prime minister, a group representing Roman Catholic bishops in Italy warned that they could “not accept seeing the exercise of freedom of religion being compromised”.

The bishops argued that the government and its scientific advisers should concentrate on giving precise sanitary guidelines and leave it to the Church to implement them autonomously.

Equal Opportunities and Family Minister Elena Bonetti also spoke out against the ban.

“So, we can safely visit a museum but we can’t celebrate a religious service? This decision is incomprehensible. It must be changed,” she tweeted.

Mr. Conte said in his address on Sunday: “I understand that freedom of worship is a fundamental people’s right. I understand your suffering. But we must continue discussing this further with the scientific committee.”

What is the background?

Italians have been living under a national stay-at-home order since 9 March, with everyone required to remain within a few streets of their door.

The country brought in a very limited easing of its virus control measures on 14 April, permitting some small shops – including bookstores, dry cleaners, and stationers – to reopen. The businesses chosen were deemed to be a lower risk as they rarely attract crowds.