https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Spain in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed Wearing a face mask and social distancing were a part of Magdalena Moskal's immunosuppressed life, long before the coronavirus pandemic hit. https://www.thelocal.es/20210714/covid-fears-haunt-spains-transplant-patients-despite-vaccines Wed, 14 Jul 2021 11:13:09 +0200 covid-fears-haunt-spains-transplant-patients-despite-vaccines An end-of-year student trip to Spain's Balearic Islands has sparked a major coronavirus cluster with hundreds of confirmed cases and thousands of young people in quarantine across the country, officials said Friday. https://www.thelocal.es/20210625/mallorca-student-trip-sparks-huge-covid-19-cluster-in-spain Fri, 25 Jun 2021 19:33:56 +0200 mallorca-student-trip-sparks-huge-covid-19-cluster-in-spain The head of the European Commission vaccines task force, Thierry Breton, unveiled the first European "health passport" on Sunday, claiming he hopes Europe will have a summer season "comparable to last year". https://www.thelocal.es/20210328/eu-vaccine-chief-hopes-for-tourism-boost-as-he-unveils-covid-19-passport Sun, 28 Mar 2021 17:35:17 +0200 eu-vaccine-chief-hopes-for-tourism-boost-as-he-unveils-covid-19-passport Barcelona’s two main music festivals - Primavera Sound and Sonar - may have just been cancelled, but organisers will be holding a trial concert with an audience on Saturday instead, with masks and negative PCR tests required from concertgoers. https://www.thelocal.es/20210326/barcelona-to-hold-covid-trial-concert-with-5000-people-as-big-festivals-get-cancelled Fri, 26 Mar 2021 12:21:30 +0100 barcelona-to-hold-covid-trial-concert-with-5000-people-as-big-festivals-get-cancelled Gibraltar said it will offer a coronavirus vaccine to the roughly 15,000 cross-border workers who commute daily from Spain to work in the tiny British territory. https://www.thelocal.es/20210305/gibraltar-to-vaccinate-cross-border-workers Fri, 05 Mar 2021 16:44:19 +0100 gibraltar-to-vaccinate-cross-border-workers Despite ongoing travel restrictions, up to 45 million tourists could still visit Spain this year if the country's Covid-19 vaccine rollout isn't delayed, a new study has found. https://www.thelocal.es/20210305/spain-could-receive-up-to-45-million-tourists-in-2021-if-vaccine-targets-met-study Fri, 05 Mar 2021 13:53:57 +0100 spain-could-receive-up-to-45-million-tourists-in-2021-if-vaccine-targets-met-study Spain's 17 regions have in principal agreed to close their borders during the week leading up to Easter Sunday, but no official deal has yet been reached and the Canaries may stay open. https://www.thelocal.es/20210305/spains-regions-are-open-to-closing-borders-over-easter Fri, 05 Mar 2021 11:02:56 +0100 spains-regions-are-open-to-closing-borders-over-easter Residents of Valencia, Alicante and Castellón provinces can look forward to fewer Covid-19 restrictions from March 1. https://www.thelocal.es/20210225/how-spains-valencia-region-plans-to-ease-restrictions-in-march Thu, 25 Feb 2021 11:12:57 +0100 how-spains-valencia-region-plans-to-ease-restrictions-in-march Spanish police on Wednesday February 17th said they had seized around four million counterfeit medical-grade face masks at a hotel during a raid on a gathering that violated virus restrictions. https://www.thelocal.es/20210217/spanish-police-seize-4-million-fake-medical-grade-masks Wed, 17 Feb 2021 16:53:42 +0100 spanish-police-seize-4-million-fake-medical-grade-masks With entertainment venues shuttered across much of Europe, Spain stands out as a cultural oasis where people still go to the theatre and cinema or watch concerts despite soaring infection rates. https://www.thelocal.es/20210123/how-culture-is-thriving-in-madrid-despite-virus Sat, 23 Jan 2021 11:01:24 +0100 how-culture-is-thriving-in-madrid-despite-virus Spanish authorities have tried to clear up confusion after numerous British residents in Spain were denied entry to the country when they were told their residency cards were not valid. https://www.thelocal.es/20210104/spanish-embassy-in-uk-confirms-that-a-nie-is-valid-for-travel Mon, 04 Jan 2021 13:05:04 +0100 spanish-embassy-in-uk-confirms-that-a-nie-is-valid-for-travel Four cases of the infectious coronavirus variant that recently emerged in Britain have now been confirmed in Madrid, the regional government said on Saturday. https://www.thelocal.es/20201226/spain-detects-first-cases-of-infectious-british-covid-variant Sat, 26 Dec 2020 13:54:58 +0100 spain-detects-first-cases-of-infectious-british-covid-variant Spain and Portugal on Monday decided to join other countries in suspending flights from the UK due to fears over the new Covid-19 strain. https://www.thelocal.es/20201221/spain-joins-other-countries-in-banning-flights-from-uk Mon, 21 Dec 2020 16:38:11 +0100 spain-joins-other-countries-in-banning-flights-from-uk Vaccinations against Covid-19, which will begin on December 27th in Spain will be voluntary, but the Ministry of Health has said that it will register those who refuse it. https://www.thelocal.es/20201221/those-who-refuse-to-be-vaccinated-will-be-registered Mon, 21 Dec 2020 17:24:12 +0100 those-who-refuse-to-be-vaccinated-will-be-registered The World Health Organization in Europe Wednesday urged families to wear face masks during this year's Christmas family gatherings, as it warned of a "further resurgence" of Covid-19 in early 2021. https://www.thelocal.es/20201216/who-warns-of-covid-19-resurgence-and-ask-families-to-wear-face-masks-during-christmas-celebrations Wed, 16 Dec 2020 13:43:22 +0100 who-warns-of-covid-19-resurgence-and-ask-families-to-wear-face-masks-during-christmas-celebrations This year has been a sad, frustrating and lonely year for many foreigners in Spain who are now longing to see their families for Christmas. The Local spoke to some of its readers to find out what their experiences of trying to get back to their home countries have been so far. https://www.thelocal.es/20201208/i-doubt-itll-go-smoothly-the-struggles-of-trying-to-get-home-for-christmas-from-spain Tue, 08 Dec 2020 17:05:54 +0100 i-doubt-itll-go-smoothly-the-struggles-of-trying-to-get-home-for-christmas-from-spain Spain has ambitious plans for 2021 and hopes to welcome back tourists from as early as March. https://www.thelocal.es/20201207/how-spain-plans-to-welcome-back-tourists-without-restrictions-from-march Mon, 07 Dec 2020 18:34:01 +0100 how-spain-plans-to-welcome-back-tourists-without-restrictions-from-march Spain plans to vaccinate at least a third of its 47 million residents by June, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Friday, with the Covid-19 immunisation campaign to start in January. https://www.thelocal.es/20201205/spain-to-vaccinate-third-of-population-by-june-pm Sat, 05 Dec 2020 11:16:46 +0100 spain-to-vaccinate-third-of-population-by-june-pm Two northern Spanish regions bordering France, Catalonia and Navarra, on Sunday announced new coronavirus restrictions on public life to try to tame a rise in Covid-19 infections. https://www.thelocal.es/20201011/two-spanish-regions-impose-new-covid-restrictions Sun, 11 Oct 2020 18:06:47 +0200 two-spanish-regions-impose-new-covid-restrictions Which country in Europe has been the most accomplished at dealing with the coronavirus pandemic, according to the public? And life in which countries has changed the most? A new international survey sheds some light on how populations across Europe feel. https://www.thelocal.es/20200827/opinion-survey-which-countries-in-europe-have-done-the-best-job-in-handling-the-virus-crisis Thu, 27 Aug 2020 20:21:20 +0200 opinion-survey-which-countries-in-europe-have-done-the-best-job-in-handling-the-virus-crisis