The UK government is to impose a 14-day quarantine on travellers arriving from Spain. The Sunday Times was first to report that the government was on the point of making this snap decision, which has now been confirmed.
The quarantine will take effect from midnight on Saturday. The measure will apply to the whole of the UK, Scotland's government saying: "The decision, also made by the devolved administrations in Northern Ireland and Wales as well as the UK government, has been made to reduce the risk of the transmission of the virus by those travelling from Spain".
The recent rise in infections has affected Catalonia in particular. The Catalonia government has introduced new measures, such as ordering a closure of nightclubs. Aragon, the Basque Country and Navarre are the other three regions to have registered the greatest increases over the past fortnight.
A spokesperson for the Spanish foreign affairs ministry says that Spain "respects decisions of the United Kingdom" and is in contact with the UK authorities. In Spain, critics of the UK government's decision are pointing out that destinations such as Benidorm, the Costa del Sol and Majorca are not reporting surges in infections.