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Denmark, the Czech Republic and Italy could outline similar plans soon, but Austria is the first European country to give dates and details. Kurz cautioned, however, that his plan was tentative and depended on developments over the next seven days.

“Easter week will be a decisive one for us. It is one that will determine whether the resurrection after Easter that we all hope for can happen as such,” he said.

Kurz urged the public to stick to overall lockdown measures that which are being extended until the end of April.

GRADUAL REOPENING

His plan is for non-essential shops of 400 square meters (4,300 square feet) or less and DIY shops to reopen on April 14, the day after Easter Monday. They would be followed by all shops, shopping malls and hairdressers on May 1.

However, only one shopper per 20 square meters of shop space will be allowed.

For their part, restaurants and hotels will have to wait until mid-May at the earliest and no public events will be held until at least late June, Kurz said.

MASKS, NOT HERD IMMUNITY

Austria has since Monday required shoppers to wear face masks at supermarkets and drugstores of more than 400 square meters. The government said it would extend that requirement to public transport and shops that are reopening.

While the public has been generally supportive of the mask requirement, wrinkles have appeared, with some supermarkets running out of masks or charging shoppers for them. Kurz said the government would check that masks are not sold for profit. A scarf or shawl can also be worn instead.