Record cases in Germany as parliament passes new measures

German health authorities posted a new record in coronavirus infections over the past 24 hours on Thursday as the head of the disease control body warned that the country faced a "serious emergency," reported dpa.

The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) put new infections at 65,371, surpassing the 60,000-mark for the first time. The seven-day incidence was 336.9 per 100,000 of the population, up from 249.1 a week ago and just 74.4 a month ago.

"We are heading into a serious emergency. We will have an extremely unpleasant Christmas if we do not act to stop this," RKI president Lothar Wieler said during an online discussion with Michael Kretschmer, premier of the state of Saxony.

Saxony currently has the highest rate of infection nationwide with a seven-day incidence of 761.4 per 100,000.

The lower house of parliament backed by a considerable majority a package of measures to counter the pandemic put forward by the three parties currently attempting to put together a new governing coalition.

The measures, intended to replace emergency provisions that expire next week, must still go to the upper house, where approval is far from certain.

The new regulations will expand measures for the workplace, public transport and care homes, but rule out closing schools or businesses. They also impose severe penalties on those evading restrictions by forging vaccination certificates, for example.

During a vigorous debate, Sabine Dittmar, health spokesman for the Social Democratic Party (SPD), which is leading the coalition talks, said the parties were reacting with necessary and legally secure measures.

Speaking for outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats, Thorsten Frei called for the expiring emergency measures to be extended instead and said they were removing powers from the state-level governments.

Later in the day, Merkel was to hold keenly anticipated talks with the premiers of the 16 states. The state premiers are seeking a unified approach to coronavirus rules and restrictions, amid a patchwork of strategies across the country.

They were to debate issues such as rules on who can access public services, hospital capacity alert thresholds and how to boost Germany's current vaccination quota of around 67.8 per cent.

Also on Thursday, the Standing Committee on Vaccination (STIKO) called for all adults to be given booster shots of the coronavirus vaccine.

A final decision will be taken after the states and professional bodies have responded to a draft prepared by STIKO.

In Saxony, Kretschmer warned that difficult decisions would have to be taken, but he held back from making an announcement until after the meeting with Merkel and the other state premiers.

Saxony has the lowest vaccination rates among the states at just 57.6 per cent fully vaccinated.