Spain says masks will be compulsory where social distancing is impossible until a coronavirus cure or vaccine is found
- Spain has been easing out lockdown and its state of emergency ends 21 June
- People must continue wearing masks in public if they can’t keep 1.5 metres apart
- Anyone found to be flouting the rules will be fined up to €100, officials said
- Here’s how to help people impacted by Covid-19
People in Spain will be forced to wear face masks where social distancing is impossible until a cure or vaccine for coronavirus is found.
It means Brits and other tourists hoping to visit Spain on holiday will also have to wear face masks as part of the drastic measure.
Health Minister Salvador Illa revealed on Tuesday that public face mask wearing will remain in place even after the country’s state of emergency ends on 21 June.
Illa said wearing the masks will be compulsory until the virus is ‘permanently’ defeated, which will be ‘when we have an effective treatment or vaccine against it’.
Those who flout the rules will be fined up to €100, he said.
People wearing protective face masks attend a protest against the Spanish government’s handling of the coronavirus disease outside the headquarters of the ruling Spanish Socialist Workers Party in Madrid last month. Wearing masks will now be mandatory in public where social distancing is not possible
Mask-wearing was initially imposed as a requirement for only those using public transport in early May but the measure was later rolled out.
Compulsory mask-wearing for everyone aged six and over, where it is not possible to maintain two metres apart in public, has been in place since 21 May.
The new regulation will, however, slightly reduce the distance to 1.5 metres.
While vaccines normally take years to develop, most experts think one will become available by around mid-2021.
Spain has had more than 242,000 known cases of coronavirus, and the killer bug has caused more than 27,000 deaths.
A mask-wearing family enjoys a traditional breakfast of Churros in Spain, served by a waiter who also wearing a mask. The mask-wearing measure in Spain will be a permanent fixture until a cure or vaccine for coronavirus is found
Mask wearing is not compulsory for very young children although it is ‘recommended’ for those between three and five.
With the epidemic now well under control Spain has been slowing easing out of its mid-March lockdown, and the country is set to reopen international borders from 1 July.
But British holidaymakers’ plans for a summer holiday in Spain were today thrown into confusion as the country said it was not discussing the creation of an ‘air bridge’ for tourists with Britain.
Mask wearing in Spain will be compulsory for all tourists planning to visit the country when it reopens international borders later this month
Britain introduced a 14-day quarantine for international arrivals and returning tourists from Monday this week.
While Portugal has said it is discussing a travel corridor that would exempt British visitors returning from Portugal from that quarantine, Spain has no plans to do the same.
A foreign ministry source said: ‘Spain has called for a common (European Union-wide) approach to opening the borders. If this is not done, it will establish its own criteria.
‘The UK is in a period of transition. This means that they will receive the same treatment as EU and Schengen countries for the opening (of borders to tourists), unless they stay out of it because of the epidemiological situation.’
Meanwhile, Spain will allow about 6,000 tourists from Germany, where the pandemic is largely under control, to fly to the Balearic Islands from June 15, two weeks before the country reopens its borders, to test how to restart tourism.
In England, face coverings on public transport will become compulsory from 15 June as more people return to work, when non-essential shops are likely to open.
The rules don’t apply, however, to people entering those shops.