- Region
- Águilas
- Alhama de Murcia
- Jumilla
- Lorca
- Los Alcázares
- Mazarrón
- San Javier
-
ALL AREAS & TOWNS
- AREAS
- SOUTH WEST
- MAR MENOR
- MURCIA CITY & CENTRAL
- NORTH & NORTH WEST
- TOWNS
- Abanilla
- Abarán
- Aguilas
- Alamillo
- Alcantarilla
- Aledo
- Alhama de Murcia
- Archena
- Balsicas
- Blanca
- Bolnuevo
- Bullas
- Cañadas del Romero
- Cabo de Palos
- Calasparra
- Camping Bolnuevo
- Campo De Ricote
- Camposol
- Canada De La Lena
- Caravaca de la Cruz
- Cartagena
- Cehegin
- Ceuti
- Cieza
- Condado de Alhama
- Corvera
- Costa Cálida
- Cuevas De Almanzora
- Cuevas de Reyllo
- El Carmoli
- El Mojon
- El Molino (Puerto Lumbreras)
- El Pareton / Cantareros
- El Raso
- El Valle Golf Resort
- Fortuna
- Fuente Alamo
- Hacienda del Alamo Golf Resort
- Hacienda Riquelme Golf Resort
- Isla Plana
- Islas Menores & Mar de Cristal
- Jumilla
- La Azohia
- La Charca
- La Manga Club
- La Manga del Mar Menor
- La Pinilla
- La Puebla
- La Torre
- La Torre Golf Resort
- La Unión
- Las Palas
- Las Ramblas
- Las Ramblas Golf
- Las Torres de Cotillas
- Leiva
- Librilla
- Lo Pagan
- Lo Santiago
- Lorca
- Lorquí
- Los Alcázares
- Los Balcones
- Los Belones
- Los Canovas
- Los Nietos
- Los Perez (Tallante)
- Los Urrutias
- Los Ventorrillos
- Mar De Cristal
- Mar Menor
- Mar Menor Golf Resort
- Mazarrón
- Mazarrón Country Club
- Molina de Segura
- Moratalla
- Mula
- Murcia City
- Murcia Property
- Pareton
- Peraleja Golf Resort
- Perin
- Pilar de la Horadada
- Pinar de Campoverde
- Pinoso
- Playa Honda
- Playa Honda / Playa Paraíso
- Pliego
- Portmán
- Pozo Estrecho
- Puerto de Mazarrón
- Puerto Lumbreras
- Puntas De Calnegre
- Region of Murcia
- Ricote
- Roda Golf Resort
- Roldan
- Roldan and Lo Ferro
- San Javier
- San Pedro del Pinatar
- Santiago de la Ribera
- Sierra Espuña
- Sucina
- Tallante
- Terrazas de la Torre Golf Resort
- Torre Pacheco
- Totana
- What's On Weekly Bulletin
- Yecla
- EDITIONS: Spanish News Today Alicante Today Andalucia Today
ARCHIVED - Spanish government considering night-time curfew to combat coronavirus
20 million people in France are already confined to their homes from 9 pm to 6 am
All over Europe national governments are coming under pressure to re-introduce restrictions on the general public in an effort to slow the spread of the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic, and in Spain there is growing support among leading politicians for the imposition of a night-time curfew such as the one already in force in parts of France.
Over 20 million people in France are currently confined to their homes from 9.00 in the evening until 6.00 in the morning, and only those with valid reasons such as travelling home from work or medical necessity are exempt from the ban on going out. The curfew is in place in Paris, Aix-Marseille, Lyon, Grenoble, Lille, Toulouse, Montpellier, Rouen and Saint-Étienne, and although there are obvious concerns over the effect on many businesses including bars and restaurants, President Emmanuel Macron believes that the measure is necessary to avoid the risk of hospitals being overrun.
It is worth noting that France is not alone in having introduced them already: similar restrictions have also been declared in parts of Belgium and Slovenia and other countries are now also considering the idea.
Elsewhere in Europe a variety of measures are being imposed: in Moscow, for example, movement is limited and secondary schools have been closed, in southern Italy all schools have been closed for a fortnight and in Poland there are “red zones” including the city of Warsaw where both schools and gyms have been obliged to close.
The idea behind a curfew is being widely promoted as a mechanism by which the nocturnal socialising which is viewed as the source of many covid contagions be limited and suppressed, without the necessity of closing bars, restaurants and businesses during daytime and early evening working hours.
By now, it is widely accepted that blanket lockdowns are bad for the economy and the mental health of the population, but with covid numbers rising at a frightening rate, there is clearly an urgent need to take measures to protect the population and suppress the spread of the virus without shutting down society altogether.
But in Spain the declaration of a new national state of emergency in order to decree a France-style curfew is necessary due to the legal structure of the Spanish Constitution and this is the idea which appears to be generating most support. The suggestion in public on Tuesday morning by Enrique Ruiz Escudero, the minister for Health in the regional government of Madrid (where approximately 34,000 cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in the last two weeks),that this could be a viable plan has brought the discussions into the public arena, and it appears from statements made on Tuesday, that the national government is willing to contemplate the measure. Sr Ruiz’s counterpart in the national government, Salvador Illa, has promised to study the proposal before this Friday, when the current states of emergency in Madrid and other localities expire.
The Minister stated on Tuesday that the Government is not contemplating an extension of the state of emergency imposed on Madrid nearly two weeks ago and is waiting for the final proposals of the regional government in order to assess what measures will be applied to replace the state of emergency, as clearly, although the number of cases has diminished in the last two weeks, the capital city is still reporting high numbers of new cases and deaths, and measures are clearly needed to continue fighting the virus.
Among the considerations which Sr Illa has to take into account are political ones, since in order for a curfew to be effectively enforced the declaration of a state of emergency would be needed, and this would require the support of the PP party (which is in opposition in the national parliament but in power in Madrid).
The Government is naturally concerned to avoid a repetition of the situation which occurred recently regarding the creation of a generalised set of measures to fight the pandemic in larger population centres; the PP had indicated privately that its regional governments would support the measure, but then unexpectedly voted against it at a critical point in the negotiations with Madrid, a move which was widely criticised as being a political action deliberately designed to cause tension in the fractious negotiations between the national Government and regional government of Madrid, the final outcome of which was the national Government totally sidelining the regional government and imposing a state of emergency.
The imposition of a nationwide state of emergency gives the national Government the same powers as were applied during the months of lockdown, so is a drastic measure and can only be undertaken with the specific agreement of the regional governments. Imposition of a nationwide curfew can clearly only be achieved by this mechanism, as it clearly restricts freedom of movement and personal liberty, so therefore, breaches the Spanish Constitution.
Regardless of whether the state decides to adopt this mechanism at a national level, similar proposals are reported to be under consideration for application at a local level in the regions of Catalunya and Valencia as the concept of the “new normality” gradually expands to include the idea of curfews.
Local governments would have to seek judicial agreement at a regional level if they wished to impose such a measure and be able to justify it based on the individual situation within their specific region.
This type of judicial agreement has been used to impose mobility restrictins all over Spain, although has been contentious, as in some cases regional courts have refused to grant permission for a measure to be applied and the regional government concerned has been forced to refer to the Supreme Court or modify their proposals.
For the time being the matter is still under debate in Spain, but it is expected that further progress could be made on Thursday when representatives of all 17 regional governments meet to discuss it.
Here in the Murcia region, the PP regional president, Fernando López Miras, considers that such a major decision should be made at national level, based on scientific recommendation and with the agreement of the 17 autonomous regional governments, as it clearly restricts the liberty of movement of residents and therefore breaches the Spanish Constitution.
Cartagena
El Carmoli
Islas Menores and Mar de Cristal
La Manga Club
La Manga del Mar Menor
La Puebla
La Torre Golf Resort
La Union
Los Alcazares
Los Belones
Los Nietos
Los Urrutias
Mar Menor Golf Resort
Pilar de la Horadada
Playa Honda / Playa Paraiso
Portman
Roldan and Lo Ferro
San Javier
San Pedro del Pinatar
Santa Rosalia Lake and Life resort
Terrazas de la Torre Golf Resort
Torre Pacheco
Aledo
Alhama de Murcia
Bolnuevo
Camposol
Condado de Alhama
Fuente Alamo
Hacienda del Alamo Golf Resort
Lorca
Mazarron
Puerto de Mazarron
Puerto Lumbreras
Sierra Espuna
Totana
Abaran
Alcantarilla
Archena
Blanca
Corvera
El Valle Golf Resort
Hacienda Riquelme Golf Resort
Lorqui
Molina de Segura
Mosa Trajectum
Murcia City
Peraleja Golf Resort
Ricote
Sucina
Condado de Alhama
El Valle Golf Resort
Hacienda del Alamo Golf Resort
Hacienda Riquelme Golf Resort
Islas Menores and Mar de Cristal
La Manga Club
La Torre Golf Resort
Mar Menor Golf Resort
Mazarron Country Club
Mosa Trajectum
Peraleja Golf Resort
Santa Rosalia Lake and Life resort
Terrazas de la Torre Golf Resort
La Zenia
Lomas de Cabo Roig
CAMPOSOL TODAY Whats OnCartagena SpainCoronavirusCorvera Airport MurciaMurcia Gota Fria 2019Murcia property news generic threadWeekly Bulletin