Evening roundupSaturday's key coronavirus developments in Luxembourg and abroad

Starting with Luxembourg

• Saturday’s update saw 571 new cases from 10,238 tests, with two more deaths. More details here.

• According to information gathered by our colleagues at RTL.lu, the new law drafted by the Government could be voted on Tuesday and enter into force the next day.

• To further reduce the number of coronavirus cases, a joint effort is needed to cut more contacts, say experts from Research Luxembourg.

• “The figures are not exactly good,” said Minister of Health Paulette Lenertin an interview with RTL, explaining that in the last five days new infections had remained at a relatively high plateau. The country needed a real downward trend that would provide a clear perspective for hospitals.

• Brief overview: These places offer coronavirus tests for children.

• [block type="summary”]Prime Minister Xavier Bettel announced an increase in the minimum wage from 1 January, but employers are having a hard time digesting this decision. Here’s what the union of enterprises had to say. In a further article we look at the history of the minimum wage in the country.

  • A reader, Zelah Dutta-Nielsen, shared her experience travelling all the way from Europe to Australia during Covid-19.
  • And lastly, to liften up the mood - In the absence of the Christmas market, the ice rink and the “Winterlights”, the City of Luxembourg has put the finishing touches to its new winter decor, installing 65 km of garlands.

  And around the world

  • A rally of nearly 10,000 opponents of government-imposed social restrictions to curb the spread of Covid-19 in Berlin this week has spared another demonstration in the eastern city of Leipzig. The protest in the German capital, which led to 365 police detentions, gives a taste of what could be expected.

  • With US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech applying for an emergency use authorization in the United States for their coronavirus vaccine and US biotech company Moderna expected to do so soon, here are the next steps in the approval and distribution process.
  • Canada’s largest city Toronto and much of its suburbs will be placed under lockdown beginning Monday due to the spread of Covid-19, Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced.
  • A planned travel bubble between Hong Kong and Singapore was scrapped a day before its launch on Saturday after the southern Chinese city announced a sudden spike in coronavirus cases.
  • The Dutch RIVM reported 6,093 new registered cases on Saturday morning, 126 more than the day before. This has put an end to the downward sloping graph, as numbers seemed to have plateaued.
  • Iran announced Saturday it had shut non-essential businesses in over half its cities and towns for up to two weeks and introduced movement restrictions to rein in its novel coronavirus outbreak.
  • Russianhealth officials reported 24,822 new infections and 476 deaths, bringing the national total to 2,064,748 million cases and 35,778 fatalities since the beginning of the year.
  • Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki on Saturday warned Poles against any travel over the Christmas period, as he announced that most coronavirus restrictions would be extended but shops would re-open.
  • Portugal on Friday extended until December 8 the state of emergency it imposed to bring down the coronavirus infection rate as the second wave of the disease spreads. More than 80 percent of Portugal’s population has been under partial lockdown, although the measures are less strict than those imposed in spring.
  • Mexico City authorities on Friday announced restrictions on alcohol sales to discourage parties and warned the city was close to another lockdown after nationwide coronavirus deaths soared past 100,000.