Germany extends event ban to October

Major events that can provide contact tracing and follow hygiene rules will be allowed to take place in Germany from September, despite an extension to the current event ban.

German chancellor Angela Merkel yesterday (17 June) met with the premiers of the country’s 16 states to extend the ban on large-scale gatherings such as festival and fairs – which currently expires on 31 August – until the end of October.

The agreement allows for some exceptions, with certain types of events that are able to track infections and comply with hygiene rules permitted to go ahead

However, the agreement allows for some exceptions, with certain types of events that are able to track infections and comply with hygiene rules permitted to go ahead.

Music industry conference and showcase festival Reeperbahn is among those still slated to take place in Germany between August and November, set for 16 to 19 September in Hamburg.

According to Hamburg government spokesperson Enno Isermann, it is planned that Reeperbahn, along with Filmfest Hamburg and Harbor Front Literature Festival, “should take place under the applicable corona regulations”.

The German live business became the envy of many others earlier this month, when the federal government unveiled a €150 million funding package for the live music industry, as part of a €1 billion boost to the country’s coronavirus-crippled creative sector.

Photo: Raimond Spekking/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) (cropped)

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