Coronavirus-struck Macron’s health remains stable, French presidency says

Macron tested positive for Covid-19 on Thursday and went into quarantine at the presidential retreat La Lanterne in Versailles. The quarantine will last for seven days, in line with national health authorities’ recommendations.

“The health condition of the president remains stable,” an official at the French presidency told Reuters on Tuesday.

Macron said in a video on Friday that he was doing well but acknowledged that he had to slow down his activities due to ongoing symptoms.

The Elysee Palace said next day that some Covid-19 symptoms “in no way prevent him from carrying out his duties.”

British PM Boris Johnson spoke with Macron on Monday by phone as the French president turned 43. “It’s his birthday by the way, but we vowed to stick off Brexit,” Johnson said.

They instead discussed freight movements across the English Channel after the French ban on hauliers entering from the UK. “It was an excellent conversation with the French president. He said he was keen to sort it out in the next few hours,” Johnson explained.

Meanwhile, many other political leaders in Europe had to self-isolate after Macron tested positive. The French president might have been infected at a recent EU summit in Brussels, the French health minister said, but Macron also had meetings in Paris. Portuguese PM António Costa, who had lunch with Macron on Wednesday last week, will remain in self-isolation beyond Christmas.

Macron declared a softer lockdown in France in October, and it was relaxed slightly last week, but restaurants and tourist sites are still closed.

The country reported 2,479,151 confirmed coronavirus cases and 60,900 deaths as of Tuesday.

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