Nightlife in Barcelona is not about to resume its course.
Catalan government spokesperson Patricia Plaja announced this afternoon that health restrictions would be in effect "all summer", in order to minimize the serious consequences of the Covid and its variant Delta.
Thanks to the measures in force, the pandemic figures are stabilizing in Catalonia and the Minister of Health announced yesterday that the health situation could "soon" return to normal.
At the same time, the government believes it has been overwhelmed by the Covid cases due to a certain health laxity.
A total of 165 municipalities are affected, four more than last week
To remedy this, the curfew decreed in Barcelona and in a large part of the tourist region of Catalonia between 1 a.m. and 6 a.m. has been extended.
Restaurants and bars will close at 12:30 a.m., nightclubs will not be able to reopen, gatherings of more than 10 people are prohibited and it is not possible to eat and drink in the public space.
An extension validated by the higher court of justice of Catalonia, this Thursday.
Put in place last Friday, the curfew, initially decreed for seven days, has been extended until next Friday for the moment due to the worsening health situation, with an incidence rate of more than 1 239 cases per 100,000 inhabitants over the last 14 days.
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In total, 165 municipalities with more than 5,000 inhabitants including Barcelona, four more than last week, are affected by this measure.
"We are far from being able to relax", assures the spokesperson of the regional government
Several consecutive months of decline in contagions and the progress of the vaccination campaign had allowed the Spanish government to lift the state of health emergency throughout the country in early May and therefore the curfew.
But the trend started to rise again a few weeks ago, in particular in Catalonia, the epicenter of this fifth wave of Covid-19 in the country due to the Delta variant.
"The weeks to come will be very, very complicated (...) we are far from being able to relax", insisted Thursday the spokesperson of the Catalan regional government, Patricia Plaja, evoking the need to take restrictions "during all the time. 'summer ".
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Several regions have taken or attempted to take measures similar to Catalonia but they must each time obtain the green light from the courts to do so.
The region of Valencia has in particular been authorized to set up a curfew in the cities most affected while the tourist archipelago of the Balearic Islands will be able to prohibit any meeting between people not belonging to the same household from 1 a.m. to 6 a.m.
Andalusia (south), the most populous region of the country and also very touristy, has also requested a curfew in the cities most affected by the increase in Covid cases.