Spain Extends Travel Ban On UK, Brazil And South Africa Arrivals Until March 16
Spain News
Published: 25 February 2021 11:34 CET
Spain’s cabinet announced on Wednesday that it was extending its ban on arrivals from the UK, Brazil and South Africa until at least March 16.
The restrictions on UK travellers was initially introduced in December following the discovery of a more transmissible variant of the virus which was detected in the south of England.
The current measures which were due to end on March 2, aim to prevent the new variants from entering the country, which would increase cases, placing further pressure on the health service and derailing the country’s ongoing vaccination efforts.
Spain added further restrictions on those from Brazil and South Africa on February 2, after it was revealed two further strains had been identified.
However, Spanish citizens and British nationals resident in Spain may continue to enter the country providing they can demonstrate their residency status prior to travel.
The decision comes as the country continues to battle the third wave of the pandemic which is beginning to show signs of easing.
On Wednesday, Spain’s Ministry of Health reported that there had been 9,212 new COVID-19 cases and a further 389 deaths, bringing the total number of fatalities to 68,468.
Despite the 14-day cumulative number of infections falling below the 250 per 100,000 inhabitants mark, health officials warned that this figure may still rise as regions lift their restrictions on social gatherings as the Easter period approaches.
Spain’s current cumulative incidence rate stands at 236 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, a fall of 62% over the last 14 days.
On Wednesday, the country’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said: “We are now all aware that the de-escalation after the first wave took place too quickly, precipitated by the need to reactivate the economy and alleviate emotional fatigue.”
"We should not have dropped our guard during the Christmas holidays.
“Prudence is thus a civic and political duty that must be maintained despite the start of the vaccination campaign.
"We must all take on-board the challenge of avoiding a fourth wave.”
Vaccination Progress
Mr Sánchez announced on Tuesday that regional governments had now administered around 3.6 million doses of the vaccines through the country with around 1.2 million citizens having now received the two doses.
Spain is now the fourth-ranked European country and sixth in the world in terms of the number of vaccines that have been administered.
However, Mr Sánchez stressed that the government was working tirelessly to ensure that by the end of June, around 20 million people will have been vaccinated with the aim of vaccinating 70% of the population by the end of summer.
Source
https://www.lamoncloa.gob.es/lang/en/presidente/news/Paginas/2021/20210223control-session.aspx
https://english.elpais.com/society/2021-02-24/spain-extends-travel-restrictions-on-arrivals-from-the-uk-brazil-and-south-africa-until-march-16.html
Image Credit: La Moncloa (Congreso de los Diputados)
