Italy's Conte signals longer lockdown

Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte prepared Italians for a longer lockdown Tuesday despite a second successive drop in the number of registered coronavirus cases.

Italy is approaching a fateful decision on whether to lift stay-at-home orders and reopen businesses for the first time in nearly two months on May 4.

Its virus death total of 24,648 is still Europe's highest and second globally after the United States.

Conte is being pushed into erring on the side of caution by leading doctors -- and to think more about the economic toll by big business leaders and some regional chiefs.

Governments across the world fear that premature lockdown exits could set off a second pandemic wave that requires another economically devastating closure.

Waiting for another few weeks or even months could potentially avert that cost.

But many businesses warn that they will not be able stand idle much longer and Italy's push for a comprehensive economic rescue from the European Union is running into resistance in Brussels.

Conte has convened a taskforce comprised of leading economists and health experts to weigh all the pros and cons.

But he indicated Tuesday that Italians will probably have to put up with various forms of restrictions for some time to come.

"I would like to be able to say, let's open everything. Right away," Conte wrote on Facebook.

"But such a decision would be irresponsible."
"The virus is still among us -- a little less strongly, but it is still there."
"Either we all win, or we all lose."