Speaking to Italian daily Il Corriere della Sera, Conte said the nationwide measures introduced in a bid to curb the spread of the virus would have to be prolonged.
“The total blockade will go on,” Conte said.
“The measures taken, both the closure of [public] activities and the ones concerning schools, can only be extended.”
Conte’s comments confirm speculation that the government would extend its current nationwide lockdown further as the coronavirus outbreak in Italy worsens.
Italy recorded a total of 3405 deaths on Thursday, compared to China’s 3245, making it home to the highest number of fatalities in the world.
As part of the quarantine measures, people can only leave their homes to get food or medicines (grocery stores and pharmacies are the only stores that remain open), or to perform other essential services or to go to work.
Most shops had been forced to close until March 25 but that deadline also looks set to be extended.
A poll published in Italian daily La Repubblica found 96 per cent of Italians were in favour of the closures and quarantine measures enforced by the government.
However, Italy’s interior ministry said on Wednesday that 43,000 people been caught breaking the lockdown rules in the first week of controls, with a million people being checked since March 11, when most public places closed.
Italy is imposing fines of €206 for anyone found outside thei homes without a valid reason.
Police in various Italian cities have been reading instructions over megaphones for everyone to “stay home and maintain distance” from each other.
It will take days or weeks yet before Italy sees the numbers of infected and deceased peak and stop rising after the government implemented the quarantine measures, experts said on Wednesday.
