The European Commission approved the criteria to guide a three-phase de-escalation of the emergency situation caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. The plan came with a battery of guidelines – for the lifting of border controls, transport, tourism and consumer protection – that sought to ensure an orderly exit and avoid the stampede of national measures that occurred with the outbreak of the deadly disease.

The Commission document established the roadmap for moving from the situation of exceptional measures of widespread restriction of movement, classified as phase 0, to a general lifting of border constraints and controls within the EU, dubbed phase 2.

Between the two extremes, countries should each pass at their own pace through the so-called phase 1, perhaps the most longed for by citizens who have been subjected to local or national confinement, but probably also the most delicate, because of the risk of an uptick in the number of contagions. That phase, according to the Commission's plan, would be the one that would save, at least in part, the coming summer tourist season.

"Travel restrictions and border controls should be phased out across the EU if epidemiological developments maintain their current positive trend," the Commission document said in its Phase 1 section. To enter this phase would be key, according to Brussels, "to achieve a sufficiently low level of contagion".

The transition from one phase to another would depend on each country's own assessment. But the text, a communication on the gradual and coordinated restoration of freedom of movement, called for "increased coordination" during the de-escalation process to avoid, among other things, generating bewilderment among citizens and fueling their distrust.

Mobility between States at the same stage, according to the Commission, should be virtually unlimited, provided that safety protocols are effectively applied in means of transport, rental cars, pleasure boats, accommodation of any kind, attractions, exhibitions, etc.

The criteria for moving from one phase to another and gradually or definitively lifting border controls included the assessment of the epidemiological situation in each Member State; the need to implement containment measures, including physical estrangement, and proportionality, "i.e., the text states, "the comparison between the benefits of maintaining a widespread restriction and social and economic considerations (of that measure), including the impact on cross-border labour mobility and trade".

Brussels warned that, in any event, "the need to maintain some measures, including physical estrangement and organizational (labour) estrangement, will continue". The Commission recommended that citizens be given means to strengthen their protection. And that they be provided with clear and consistent information on the physical estrangement that is applied in each Member State they arrived at, data which, according to Brussels, could be sent to them by SMS each time the user of a mobile phone crossed a border.

Saving the summer

"With proper, safe and coordinated management, the coming months could allow Europeans to enjoy a needy rest, relaxation and fresh air, and the reunion with their friends and family, whether in their own country or across borders," the Commission said in a second communication, focusing on tourism and transport in this case. But the goal, the organism recognized, is not only to facilitate the summer but also to save an industry in danger.

The communication and the accompanying guidelines sought to establish "a coordinated framework that would allow Europe to benefit from rest and, above all, to save the tourist session," the document said. Brussels recalled that the decline in activity in the sector worldwide could exceed one billion euros, according to data from the World Tourism Organization. Europe, one of the big markets, would be among the big ones affected. "And the coming months are crucial: EU citizens make an average of 385 million tourist trips in the summer season (June-August) and spend 190 billion euros," the Commission said.

The Community agency was convinced that the tourism sector could save some of its peak season. And it recommended that States allow passengers to enter and leave from or to countries in the same epidemiological phase. "The lifting of controls should not be limited to the geographical proximity of neighbouring States," the Commission stressed. Brussels advocated re-establishing air connections between countries without a physical border whenever they are in the same phase of de-escalacity.