Covid updates

A further 119 people tested positive for covid-19 on Monday, the government said in figures published on Tuesday. 61 people were being treated in hospital in addition to which there were 15 people in intensive care. Four new covid-19 related deaths were reported on Monday, bringing the toll to 570.

Since beginning its vaccination programme at the end of December, 7,309 people had received a vaccine dose, of which 1,245 had received the second shot. Delano

Worldwide, there have been more than 99.7m confirmed infections, including more than 2.13m deaths due to the virus and more than 55m recovered patients.

Travel from Belgium

Starting Wednesday, Belgians travelling to Luxembourg for work must complete and carry a document outlining their reason for travel. The measure, which extends until 1 March, was introduced by Belgian authorities in an effort to curb non-essential travel abroad. Paperjam.

WHO issues new treatment advice

The World Health Organization on Tuesday issued new clinical advice for treating covid-19 patients. Among the guidance, it advises using low-dose anti-coagulants to prevent blood clots, and for patients to have pulse oximetry devices in the home to measure oxygen levels to determine if they require hospitalisation. Reuters

Luxembourg MEP quits DP

Luxembourg MEP Monica Semedo quit her party on Tuesday, not long after receiving a 15-day suspension from the European Parliament for harassment of parliamentary assistants. The MEP, who has since apologised, was on Wednesday awaiting a decision by steering committee regarding party sanctions. She announced her resignation on Facebook on Tuesday. L’essentiel, RTL

CSV secretary general resigns

Félix Eischen has announced he will resign as CSV secretary general to focus on recovering from burnout. The former TV presenter and mayor of Kehlen took a leave of absence in September 2020 after he was diagnosed with a burnout. Delano

Digital collab with Morocco

Luxembourg and Morocco signed a statement of intent to work more closely on the digital transition of their respective public administrations. The two want to share their experience and expertise in digitalisation, digital trust, digital inclusion and digital infrastructure. It also opens up additional avenues for cooperation between Luxembourg’s GovTech Lab and digitalisation ministry, and Morocco’s Digital Factory and the country’s digital development agency. Delano

New Benelux programme

The Benelux economic union plans to work more closely with German and French governments in the field of crisis management, as part of its 2021-2024 programme. Luxembourg in particular wants to avoid a repeat of March 2020 when neighbouring countries unilaterally closed borders as part of lockdown measures. Delano

Architecture saviours

A new federation has been established in Luxembourg for the protection of constructed and architectural heritage. The Lëtzebuerger Denkmalschutz Federatioun calls for the protection of all buildings constructed before a specific year, yet to be decided. Delano

Renovations grant extension

A subsidy for eco-friendly home renovations in Luxembourg has been extended to the end of 2021. First launched in May 2020, the Prime House subsidy encourages better insulation of homes, among other things. Delano

Language learning lull

The pandemic has put people off learning foreign languages, with company training budgets frozen and face-to-face lessons outlawed because of social distancing. Luxembourg language schools Prolingua and Inlingua both say that while teleworking remains the norm, they won’t return to the same levels of demand seen from before the crisis. Paperjam

Tobacco-free EU

The EU is aiming for a tobacco-free bloc by 2040, according to a leaked EU-wide plan to tackle cancer. Euractiv reports that the Commission aims to have “fewer than 5% of EU citizens using tobacco in twenty years,” a goal that the EU will achieve through stricter rules on new products, and an extension of smoke-free zones in outdoor public places, among other things.

Dutch riots

Calm returned to Dutch cities on Tuesday night following three days of unrest in which 500 people were detained for violating social distancing regulations. The riots broke out after the Netherlands introduced its first curfew since World War Two on Saturday. It came as infections fell with around 4,000 new infections reported on Tuesday. Reuters, Politico, BBC

EU citizen incentives to leave UK

The UK is reportedly offering incentives for EU nationals to leave, under a voluntary migrant returns scheme, which includes flights and up to £2,000 for resettlement. Critics say the scheme undermines the government’s claims it was doing everything to encourage people to register for settled status. The Guardian

Italian PM resigns

Italy’s prime minister, Giuseppe Conte, has handed in his notice two weeks after surviving two confidence votes in parliament. The governing centre-left coalition he has led for 16 months lost its majority in the Senate. Critics say tendering his resignation was an attempt to avoid further defeat at a Senate vote later in the week and ensure his own political survival. Politico, Euronews

Quarantine chain reaction machine

French tennis player Edouard Roger-Vasselin got creative during his quarantine time ahead of the Australian Open and shot this chain reaction quarantine machine, shared on the BBC.

Today’s breakfast briefing was written by Jess Bauldry