10th December 2024
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Catalan president Quim Torra advises against travelling to Madrid

Latest: Coronavirus in Spain figures (20 Oct)

The president of the Catalan government, Quim Torra, has advised residents of Catalonia against travelling to Madrid, due to the worsening situation of Coronavirus (Covid-19) in the region.

From today [Monday 21 Sept], the Madrid region has imposed partial lockdown measures on nearly one million citizens, in a further attempt to stop the spread of the virus. The measures were announced on Friday by Isabel Díaz Ayuso, the president of the Madrid regional government.

ALSO READMadrid in partial lockdown, with regional government under spotlight  

Overall, Spain has recorded 125,944 new infections of Coronavirus in the past 14 days – with 36% of them in Madrid. Figures released by the Health Ministry on Friday showed that Madrid has seen 45,482 infections in 14 days – a total of 187,045 since the start of the pandemic. The number of cases per 100,000 people for Spain overall in the past 14 days is 267.82. For Madrid that figure is 682.57. There have been a total of 8,999 Coronavirus-related deaths in the region – 144 in the past 7 days.

Quim Torra
Catalan president Quim Torra speaking at a Red Cross event on 21 September 2020. (@CreuRojaCAT / Twitter)

Catalonia, meanwhile, has seen 12,294 infections in the past 14 days, according to Friday’s figures – and a total of 128,901 since the start of the pandemic. The number of cases per 100,000 people for Catalonia in the past 14 days is 160.18. There have been a total of 5,797 Coronavirus-related deaths in Catalonia – 5 in the past 7 days.

On Monday, Catalan president Quim Torra said that only ‘very exceptional reasons’ could justify travelling to Madrid at the moment.

Torra himself was obliged to go to Madrid last Thursday for a hearing at the Spanish Supreme Court, regarding the final ruling on whether he will be barred from office for ‘disobedience’.

On Monday Torra said that after talking to railway and airport operators, Adif and Aena, he had requested temperature checks to be performed on all passengers arriving from Madrid by train and plane.

Speaking at an event at the Red Cross headquarters in Barcelona, Torra also urged the regional government of Madrid and its surrounding area ‘to not allow anyone leave the Madrid region if there is no guarantee that the passenger has no symptom of Covid-19’.

He also offered ‘all technical teams’ available to help stop the spread of Covid-19 there.

He had earlier also criticised the administration led by Isabel Díaz Ayuso in the Madrid region, saying, ‘I do not understand why stronger measures have not been implemented given the current situation.’

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez met with Isabel Díaz Ayuso on Monday to discuss the evolution of Coronavirus in the Madrid region. [We will be publishing a separate report on this].

Click here for all previous reports on: Coronavirus in Spain

ALSO READMadrid in partial lockdown, with regional government under spotlight

ALSO READ: Coronavirus in Spain figures (18 Sept)

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ALSO READ: Madrid reinforces its measures against Covid-19, as infections continue to rise

ALSO READ: Authorities warn of fines following anti-face mask protest in Madrid

ALSO READ: Madrid makes face masks compulsory – and imposes nightlife restrictions 

ALSO READ: Lifting of lockdown in Spain – full details of all phases for all regions

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