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Police issue 35,000 fines as Spain embraces ‘freedom’ after 48 days of lockdown

More than 35,000 people were fined over the weekend as people went outside to take walks and exercise for the first time after 48 days of lockdown.

Published: 5 May 2020 13:06 CEST
Police issue 35,000 fines as Spain embraces 'freedom' after 48 days of lockdown
Photo: AFP

Strict rules were in place for the lifting of restrictions to allow people to leave their homes just to stretch their legs, go for a run or take a bike ride.

Before Saturday, adults were only allowed out of the house for specific reasons which included buying supplies from the supermarket or pharmacy and visiting a doctor.


A police van on patrol in Sevilla. Photo: AFP 

But from May 2nd, restrictions were lifted to allow adults, either alone or with someone else from the same household, to leave for up to an hour within a designated time slot depending on their age.

However, despite the majority following the rules, there were those who flouted the regulations.

Spain’s interior ministry said police across Spain had issued a total of 36,762 fines during the weekend and made 235 arrests.

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The total number of penalties issued since lockdown was declared on March 14th has now reached 806,595 with 7,189 arrests made.

Data provided by the Interior Ministry reveals that Saturday and Sunday are the peak time for breaking the rules with at least 30,000 fines issued each weekend since lockdown began.

The penalties reached their peak over the Easter weekend when almost 50,000 fines were issued.

The tweets below show the figures for Saturday and Sunday.

 

On Saturday night in Madrid, where May 2nd is a public holiday and day of festivity, police patrols had to break up 30 'botellones' – the Spanish word that describes a gathering of people on the street drinking, and issued 1,434 penalty notices. 

Municipal police said they had intervened in 30 different “street parties” involving between 5 and 12 people who were not keeping to social distancing measures. They also stopped 51 vehicles that were on the road without valid reason and made two arrests.

One video of people dancing in the street in the capital's Malasaña district went viral and prompted criticism from Madrid's mayor. Jose Luis Martínez Almeida who tweeted: “This hasn't been won yet. It’s taken a lot, it has taken many lives to get here. Let’s be responsible until the end.”

 

 

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COVID-19

Public Health Agency recommends two Covid doses next year for elderly

Sweden's Public Health Agency is recommending that those above the age of 80 should receive two doses of a Covid-19 vaccine a year, once in the spring and once in the autumn, as it shifts towards a longer-term strategy for the virus.

Published: 23 December 2022 10:53 CET
Public Health Agency recommends two Covid doses next year for elderly

In a new recommendation, the agency said that those living in elderly care centres, and those above the age of 80 should from March 1st receive two vaccinations a year, with a six month gap between doses. 

“Elderly people develop a somewhat worse immune defence after vaccination and immunity wanes faster than among young and healthy people,” the agency said. “That means that elderly people have a greater need of booster doses than younger ones. The Swedish Public Health Agency considers, based on the current knowledge, that it will be important even going into the future to have booster doses for the elderly and people in risk groups.” 

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People between the ages of 65 and 79 years old and young people with risk factors, such as obesity, diabetes, poor kidney function or high blood pressure, are recommended to take one additional dose per year.

The new vaccination recommendation, which will start to apply from March 1st next year, is only for 2023, Johanna Rubin, the investigator in the agency’s vaccination programme unit, explained. 

She said too much was still unclear about how long protection from vaccination lasted to institute a permanent programme.

“This recommendation applies to 2023. There is not really an abundance of data on how long protection lasts after a booster dose, of course, but this is what we can say for now,” she told the TT newswire. 

It was likely, however, that elderly people would end up being given an annual dose to protect them from any new variants, as has long been the case with influenza.

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