Spain, hit by one of the worst outbreaks, closed its land borders to keep from exporting the virus, and several European countries barred travellers from there. The European Union was considering ditching its notoriously stringent fiscal rules that impose hard limits on member governments’ deficits. As a result, Ireland, a European Union member that has a passport-free travel agreement with Britain, was not covered by the policy. But formalising continentwide restrictions became necessary, European officials said, as major countries like the United States advised their citizens to avoid Europe, and as European countries told their own citizens to avoid neighbouring nations. As a practical matter, the European Union lockdown will be up to each country to put in place; the bloc does not have the ability to enforce it.

Source: bd News24 March 18, 2020 04:18 UTC