Night curfew ends in Catalonia, other restrictions remain for at least another week

Latest: Coronavirus in Spain figures (24 Jan)

The Covid restriction of a night curfew in towns and cities across Catalonia that have high incidence rates ended at midnight on Thursday 20 January, going into Friday 21 January morning. Other restrictions, however, remain in place for at least another week.

The 1am-6am curfew that has had an impact on around 6.5 million residents across Catalonia first came into force on Christmas Eve until Friday 7 January, and was then extended for 14 days.

The Catalan government confirmed that it would not be asking the Catalan High Court to extend the night curfew for a further period. Other measures, however, remain in place for at least another week and will be reviewed on a weekly basis rather than every 14 days, due to the rapidly evolving nature of the health crisis, Catalan government spokesperson Patrícia Plaja said on Tuesday.

‘We cannot afford the consequences of not implementing restrictions during this sixth wave in which all records have been broken,’ Plaja said.

The current measures that will be extended have affected municipalities with over 10,000 inhabitants and an incidence rate of over 250 during seven days.

The measures include a 10-person limit on social gatherings, 50% capacity limits in the indoor seating areas of bars and restaurants and a 70% cap in non-essential stores, as well as the on-going closure of nightclubs.

The 10-person limit on social gatherings will have to be greenlit by the High Court as it restricts individual rights and freedoms.

For now, Covid-19 vaccination certificates are still required for entry into restaurants and gyms. On Monday, Catalan health minister Josep Maria Argimon said that he had asked the Covid-19 scientific advisory committee to issue a report on their use, given the highly contagious nature of the Omicron variant.

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