20 fines an hour in 1st weekend of Valencian Community curfew

Police authorities across the Valencian Community (Alicante, Valencia and Castellón) fined around 140 people last Sunday morning.

Spain’s Valencian region implemented a 00:00 – 06:00 curfew in effect from midnight Saturday.

But despite widespread media coverage, police fined some 140 people for not respecting the toque de queda.

Police figures seen by Valencian Daily Las Provincias show 300 fines for breaking COVID-19 restrictions – the majority, some 40%, were for breaking curfew – over the weekend.

This means across the Valencian Community provinces, some 20 people were fined every hour during the first 6 hours of curfew.

The remaining fines were for not wearing masks, or for throwing parties in breach of health regulations, Valencian Community councillor for Justice, Gabriela Bravo, told reporters on Monday.

“For a population of 5 million inhabitants, the small amount of fines drawn up shows the responsible and exemplary behaviour of Valencianos,” Bravo said during the press briefing.

Bravo said the government will beef up police presence over the next few days, especially with Halloween round the corner.

She also urged Valencian region residents to ‘denounce’ neighbours throwing parties that break new health rules and regulations – read the rules here.

Fines for infractions can range anywhere from €60 – €600,000 – read how they work here.

“If you see your neighbour throwing a party, don’t be afraid, call and report,” Gloria Calero, the national government’s delegate in Valencia, told reporters alongside Bravo.

Both added however the ultimate aim was to find an ‘equilibrium’ between restricting movement and social reunions and saving the economy.

“We need to recuperate, flatten the accumulated incidence and reach Christmas with a much lower number of infections,” Bravo said.