PM Orban: Should pupils and students resume classes, protection masks will be provided by the authorities

Prime Minister Ludovic Orban said on Friday, after attending the meeting of the Technical-Scientific Support Group on the management of highly contagious diseases on the Romanian territory, that if the pupils and students resume activity, the mask of protection will be provided by the authorities.

"As you know, the President of Romania has announced that the obligation to wear the mask will apply to enclosed spaces. The school is an enclosed space. If activity resumes with the participation of pupils and students in schools/universities, the mask will certainly be provided. (...) If the schools open - I repeat, this is a decision that will be made after a very serious analysis - we certainly believe that it is normal for the Government to provide the masks for all pupils and students who will not be able to obtain them," Orban said, when asked if the protection mask will be mandatory for children and what solutions are envisaged to provide them in case people cannot afford to buy them.

He added that a decision has not yet been made as to who will provide these masks, as he was asked who would provide them: the state, the school or the town hall.

The premier specified in the context that an analysis has not yet been carried out to determine whether hotels, restaurants, parks or beauty salons remain closed after the end of the state of emergency, adding that there will be a reopening of activities in the cultural field, but after a serious analysis.