Before possible loosening of the corona restrictions, people in North Rhine-Westphalia have largely adhered to the ban on contact, despite the wonderful spring weather on the Easter weekend. The number of proceedings initiated following administrative offences was mostly below that of the previous weekend, the cities reported. Due to the significantly cooler temperatures on Easter Monday, significantly fewer people in NRW went outside on this day.

On Wednesday, the heads of state governments will meet with Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) to discuss the next steps and determine how to proceed after the Easter holidays. A group of experts appointed by the government of North Rhine-Westphalia has presented guidelines and proposals for relaxing the strict corona restrictions.

The paper of the interdisciplinary team states that relaxation can only be considered once it is clear that the health care system is "not foreseeably overburdened" and the conditions for better "monitoring" the crisis have been created. Then, however, the return to normality could be "gradually introduced". The National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina also published recommendations on Monday. Under certain conditions, primary schools and lower secondary schools should gradually reopen as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, the number of confirmed corona infections in North Rhine-Westphalia has risen to 26,984. That was 651 cases more than on Sunday, according to the NRW Health Ministry on Easter Monday. From the beginning of the pandemic until Monday, 613 deaths were registered in the most populous state, 44 more than on the previous day. In addition, the Ministry reported a total of 13,316 convalescents in the state on Monday - 484 more than on the morning of the previous day.

On the Easter weekend, the traffic situation in NRW was significantly quieter than usual on public holidays. "Traffic was significantly reduced at the weekend," said a spokesperson for the state control center on Monday. This had confirmed the expectations of the police that fewer people would be on trips and family visits because of the current corona regulations. "Over the weekend, we counted perhaps twelve traffic jams on the motorways." There were no particularly serious accidents among them.

Before the decision by politicians on how to proceed with the crisis, Bonn virologist Hendrik Streeck rejected criticism over Easter about the publication of an interim result of the so-called Heinsberg study.

"The publication was by no means frivolous. We discussed into the night on Thursday whether we should now present the first data. We decided to do so for ethical reasons and because we felt obliged to report a valid interim result based on scientific criteria before publication." It's perfectly normal.

On Thursday, Streeck presented the first results of his study in the Heinsberg district, which is particularly affected by the coronavirus, in the presence of Prime Minister Armin Laschet (CDU).

The Berlin virologist Christian Drosten announced that there were questions about the study. However, he did not make any "accusations" or "criticism" of the results.

Drosten made it clear on Twitter that he would like a manuscript of the interim results. And when a scientist asks for a manuscript, it should not be a "denunciation" or "dispute". Drosten continued to write: "There is no reproach to colleagues, only a request. Discourse enables the formation of scientific opinion. ...even if some would like a scholarly dispute. "

High school graduates in the district of Heinsberg in North Rhine-Westphalia, which is particularly affected by the corona pandemic, have asked the state government to cancel the written examinations. In an open letter and a petition, they argue for an average high school diploma or examinations in the coming year.

If the exams were to be written as announced starting May 12th, this could significantly worsen the average grades of many, the students argue. In the case of an average Abitur, the marks of the past six months would form the final grade.

(Original text: dpa. Translation: Mareike Graepel)