MADRID (Reuters) – Madrid’s regional authorities will in the coming hours publish a decree to put the Spanish capital and nine nearby towns under partial lockdown, with immediate effect, a source from Madrid’s regional government told Reuters on Friday.
By publishing the decree, the conservative-led regional government will reluctantly comply with an order from the Socialist-led central government to ban non-essential travel to and from the city to fight a steep surge in COVID-19 cases.
It had so far not been clear when the lockdown would start.
Madrid region chief Isabel Diaz Ayuso, who is against the partial lockdown, is due in parallel to appeal to the country’s tribunals to lift the restrictions as she is worried about the impact of a broader shutdown on the economy.
With 859 cases per 100,000 people, according to the World Health Organization, the Madrid region is the worst COVID-19 hotspot in Europe and the central government, backed by a number of other regions, decided to step in after a bitter spat with local authorities.
With the new restrictions, 4.8 million people in Madrid and nine nearby municipalities will see borders closed to outsiders for non-essential visits, with only travel for work, school, doctors’ visits or shopping allowed. A curfew for bars and restaurants will be moved to 11 p.m. from 1 a.m.
(Reporting by Belen Carreno; Writing by Emma Pinedo and Inti Landauro; Editing by Ingrid Melander)
