Variant delta, vaccination: concern spreads to the events sector

" For the past week or so I've been receiving messages from organisers, all along the same lines: they're all talking about postponements and marketing at a standstill. Exhibitors freeze their commitments in the face of uncertainty about the health situation at the end of the summer "Frédéric Pitrou, General Delegate of the Union Française des Métiers de l'Événement (UNIMEV), has this to say the collateral effects of the increasing circulation of variant delta on the events sector. This variant - not to mention the Lambda and Epsilon variants which could one day dethrone it - is causing concern throughout the economic world, with the CAC 40 dropping by more than 2.5 % in the early afternoon of 8 July, and other European stock markets also falling. This variant has also prompted the Secretary of State for European Affairs, Clément Beaune, to urge the French to avoid Portugal and Spain during their holidays, at a time when these countries are seeking to combat the increase in contamination by introducing new curfews and restrictions.

Faced with the risk of a fourth wave, is there a risk that the events sector, having only just got back on its feet, will already find itself at a standstill? Ten days ago, the mayor of Lille, Martine Aubry, announced, for example the cancellation of the 2021 edition of the famous "grande braderie which was due to be held on the first weekend in September. More recently, the Foire de Nantes, scheduled for the end of August, was also cancelled. " Its marketing was at too low a level to be maintained" explains Frédéric Pitrou, for whom " the current health situation means that the events of September are beginning to be called into question. "

For her part, Odile Delannoy, President of the Coésio network, also notes that ". a clear brake since we started talking about new measures in Portugal and Spain. The negative messages playing over and over again on the news channels, it makes organisers nervous. " At the inauguration of the newly renovated Palais des Congrès in Versailles on 8 JulyWhile Odile Delannoy noted that " the takeover was a foregone conclusion" , " there's still a long way to go. It is struggling to recover at a decent pace. After seeing 85% of cancellations in 2020, followed by a catastrophic first half of 2021, the second half looks set to be very complicated. "Faced with last-minute requests and prescribers waiting to see how the health situation develops, Odile Delannoy is expecting " homework play with dexterity to react quickly if confidence returns. "

Bruno Le Maire, the French Minister for the Economy and Finance, who was in Versailles for the inauguration of the Palais des Congrès, highlighted the gap between the " a strong and solid economic rebound, even stronger than we expected "and on the other, " a worrying epidemiological situation" . " I wouldn't want it to threaten the recovery in any way." he added, calling on the public to be vaccinated and to show a sense of responsibility. You are both an individual and a citizen. Individuals may say that they don't want to be vaccinated, that they don't have the time, that they're against it. But the citizen must never forget that he or she is responsible for the nation's collective situation, and that this depends on our sense of responsibility and the mass vaccination. "

To win over any reluctance, Bruno Le Maire argued his case by playing on the heartstrings: ". Think about your restaurant neighbour whom you visit regularly, who has just reopened his restaurant after 14 months, who has invested in his establishment, who has gone out to find his employees - and he has sometimes had difficulty finding them - and who says to himself that, at last, things are starting up again. Do you want us to say to him in a few weeks' time that we have to close down again? because we haven't been able to take collective responsibility ? Just think of the events sector, which was promised that it would be able to restart, only to be told that, in the end, the restart has been postponed by a few months because of a new wave of pandemics... Nobody wants that. "

Vaccination is clearly the only way to protect ourselves today against another setback, after so many reborn hopeswould be on a massive scale. However, with 35 million French people having received a first dose and over 25 million fully vaccinated, herd immunity, set at 80 %, is still a long way off. And the government, while seeing an encouraging sign in the increase in appointments for first injectionsintends to support this dynamic. " This increase must be permanent and sustainable, and mark the start of a new wave of mass vaccination." said Gabriel Attal, the government spokesman.

A Defence Council meeting on Monday 12 July is expected to result in new measures, including compulsory vaccination for healthcare staff, but could also address issues of particular concern to the tourism sector, such as the extension of the health pass or the end of free PCR tests. When asked about this, Frédéric Pitrou, from UNIMEV, said he was personally quite in favour of seeing " The health pass will also apply to restaurants, cinemas and other public places, as is the case in Israel. This could trigger a bigger wave of vaccination. "A professional who would also look favourably on vaccination imposed on certain sectors to avoid inconsistencies. for example, situations where, in a restaurant, the waiters are not vaccinated and the customers are. "Like Bruno Le Maire, Frédéric Pitrou invites " every citizen to take responsibility."