France’s regional mayors urge the government to delay the reopening of schools until after May 11.

In an open letter to President Macron published in French media’s La Tribune website on Sunday, the group of mayors, including Paris’ Anne Hidalgo, asked that the reopening of nurseries and schools be delayed, arguing the deadline is “untenable and unrealistic.”

The 329 signatories to the letter say that they require more time “to allow for the strict application of an equally stringent health protocol” when France begins phasing out a nationwide lockdown.

The mayors likened the calendar preparing the lockdown’s end to a “forced march” carried through “even as we do not yet have all the information to ready the population, and the directives keep shifting.”

The government is also criticised for failing to consult with the mayors on how to best reintegrate students and teachers back into schools.

They expressed the need to “clearly prioritise the children who will be able/should be able to return to school taking into account the family context of each child.”