15 December 2020: The Netherlands enters into a strict lockdown of a minimum five-week duration

15 December 2020: Update on The Corona Pandemic – The increase in the number of coronavirus cases in the Netherlands, with nearly 10,000 new infections per day, made the Dutch government to pull the emergency break and to install a “strict lockdown” as of last night. While Dutch testing strategy is similar to the Belgian one, 522 infections per 100,000 inhabitants were confirmed over the past two weeks in the Netherlands, compared to 225 in Belgium. Said that, the number of infections in Belgium has risen for the second day in a row. Some hope that the Xmas holidays will calm the figures down a little, but still these early signs urge the question if we need to anticipate a steeper increase and follow the Netherlands and Germany and implement stricter measures. The Belgian government is meeting again to re-evaluate the coronavirus measures on Friday. Some argue that stricter measures will just hit the people who are already following the rules and are making a case to drive compliance. I would argue in favour of both, implementing stricter rules and driving compliance more aggressively. Anyhow, I wish the government courage and wisdom at their upcoming meeting. To cheer you up I’m sending you postcard greetings from the Geldersekade downtown Amsterdam – Amsterdam, the Netherlands.