Italy eases lockdown with 4.4m people returning to work

Millions of people were allowed to return to work in Italy yesterday as Europe’s longest lockdown started to ease, while countries from Iceland to India took steps to loosen coronavirus restrictions. Businesses, including hairdressers in Greece and restaurants in Lebanon, were opening their doors under new conditions.

With pressure growing in many countries for more measures to restart the economy, politicians also were trying to boost funding for research into a vaccine for Covid-19. There are hopes that one could be available in months, but warnings that it could take much longer.

Italy, the first European country hit by the pandemic and a nation with one of the world’s highest death tolls, started stirring after its twomonth shutdown. In all, 4.4 million Italians were able to return to work, and restrictions on movement eased.

Traffic in Rome picked up, construction sites and manufacturingoperationsresumed, parks reopened and flower vendors returned to the Campo dei Fiori market for the first time since 11 March.

“It’s something that brings happiness and joy, and people have been missing that these days,” vendor Stefano

Fulvi said. He does not expect to break even any time soon, “but you have to take the risk at some point”.

But Europeans’ new-found freedoms are limited as officials are wary of setting off a second wave of infections.

In Italy, mourners were able to attend funerals, but services were limited to 15 people and there was still no word on when Masses will resume. Restaurants scrubbed their floors in preparation for takeaway service, but sit-down service was several weeks away.

Southern Italy braced for the return of students and workers who were trapped in the hard-hit north when the lockdown took effect. Some regional governors said they would require anyone arriving home to go into quarantine for two weeks.

“It’s a new page that we must write together, with trust and responsibility,” Premier Giuseppe Conte said in a message to Italians.

Belgium allowed some companies to open offices to employees, though remote work was still encouraged.

Italians still have to carry certifications explaining why they are out.

Greece, which began lifting its seven-week lockdown yesterday, dropped a similar requirement for people to send a text message or carry a self-written permit justifying being outdoors.