Prime Minister is going to address the country at 19:00. We'll be live tweeting the speach.
The last live presidental address was in the 1970s, over the oil crisis.
He's is starting by giving his best to those suffering from the virus, those in hospitals and their families.
He understands that with all of the information coming from in the country and out, that there are a lot of questions about what people should do.
Information in this day, he says, moves faster than light.
The reality is that the virus is here and that it is spreading.
And that it's very important that we prevent people with compromised immunse systems and those who are vulnerable from getting infected.
There are three scenarios. The first is maximal containment and that's what we are choosing.
The second is let the virus spread, the third is to lock everyone in their house. Neither of these are good.
The government is keeping an eye on how long the rules, such as closing the restaurants, will be neceessary. And it's possible that we will need to take more measures.
This period is also extremely stressful for people who are worried about their jobs, both small companies and large ones like KLM.
The government is doing everything it can to prevent companies from going bankrupt and from keeping people from losing their jobs.
He thanks the population for everything that they have done until now.
He encourages everyone to listen to the experts, to abide by the rules and to help where they can.
He says, to everyone from hospital worker to cleaners, that you do fantasic work and we thank you.
Together we can get through this difficult period together.
He ends with: Let op elkaar. Take care of each other.
Text of the speech is here [in Dutch]: rijksoverheid.nl/documenten/toe…
Here's our story on the speech: dutchnews.nl/news/2020/03/w…
Here is the full speech in English: government.nl/documents/spee…
