The new restrictive measures provide for curfews from 23:00 to 6:00, said Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.
The Spanish government has approved new restrictive measures due to the Coronavirus pandemic, which include curfews. This was announced on Sunday by the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Pedro Sanchez.
“I want to inform you that the government has just announced the introduction of a high availability regime throughout the country, which will come into force this evening”, – said the head of the Cabinet. According to him, – “a ban on the free movement of people from 23:00 to 06:00 is being introduced. Regional authorities will be allowed to make small adjustments in time intervals. This measure does not apply to the Canary Islands.”
“Our proposal, which will have to be discussed [and approved by Parliament], is to extend the high alert regime for six months, until 9 May,” Sanchez said. – I am officially asking all parliamentary groups to ensure that this exceptional measure has the best possible support. He specified that the governments of the Autonomous Communities “will be able to take decisions on the imposition of restrictions on entry and exit from their territories”.
The prime minister explained that the authorities “limit [people’s] access to the street [at night], except for justified reasons”. According to the head of government, this measure will help reduce the rate of coronavirus proliferation in the country. In addition, each region will be able to prohibit residents from gathering in groups of more than six people.
The High Availability Regime is provided for in the Spanish Constitution and provides the legal basis for stricter restrictive measures. It can be introduced by the Spanish government for a maximum of 15 days, both in the entire Kingdom and in a particular region, and renewal requires parliamentary approval.
Since coronavirus began to spread in Spain, more than 1 million infected people have been identified and 34,700 patients have died. However, the Prime Minister has previously stated that the real number of people in the country who have suffered from the disease exceeds 3 million. The Government has already introduced a high alert regime in the Kingdom due to the pandemic in mid-March. It was in force until 21 June. At that time, this measure restricted the movement of people throughout the country.