MADRID, March 14 (Reuters) - Spain plans to put its 47 million inhabitants under partial lockdown from Monday as part of a 15-day state of emergency plan to combat the coronavirus, a draft of an official decree seen by Reuters showed.
The government will say all Spaniards must stay home except to buy food, go to the pharmacy, to the hospital, or to work or for other emergencies, the draft being discussed on Saturday by Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and his ministers showed.
Bars, restaurants, conference centers and all leisure and sports activities - including cinemas, theaters, swimming pools or football grounds - will be shut down.
A source with knowledge of the talks said the measures that are part of the lockdown could change in the cabinet talks, which were still going on and lasting longer than planned.
All public transport would be curtailed, the draft showed, with airline, train, bus and boat operators told they need to cut their services by at least half and that any plane, train, bus or other means of transport can only be a third full.
The draft decree does not, however, foresee closing the country's borders.
Employers would have the obligation to let their workers work remotely and judicial proceedings will be suspended.
Spain's Interior Ministry would control all police forces, including local and regional ones, under the 15-day emergency.
The health and transport ministries would also have nationwide reach, taking over some local or regional powers.
The draft says the lockdown will begin on Monday at 8 a.m. (0700 GMT) while all other measures will enter into force as soon as the decree is published in the official journal.
The government did not comment on the details of the leaks, also reported in Spanish media, but said only the final version will be valid.
CASES UP BY A THIRD FROM FRIDAY
A news conference, initially announced for 1300 GMT was first delayed by an hour and is now set for later in the day, with no specific time.
The draft decree would also allow the government to ration supplies and requisition factories and buildings.
It did not detail what the sanctions would be for breaching the lockdown or other aspects of the state of emergency.
Earlier in the day, authorities in Madrid urged people to stay home, Madrid and the southern city of Seville announced the cancellation of hugely popular Holy Week celebrations and shops in several regions had already shut down.
Spain is the second-hardest hit country in Europe after Italy, with 5,753 cases recorded on Saturday, up by a third from Friday even as health authorities in the Madrid region, which has the highest number of cases, stopped testing people with only mild symptoms.
Sanchez's left wing government took few steps at first to impose tough measures and changed tack only this week. The opposition has criticized the government for letting events like International Women's Day marches go ahead a week ago.
National and regional authorities have said they reacted appropriately, taking stronger measures when the number of cases started soaring on Monday.
With schools shut across Spain and a first package of economic steps announced on Thursday, the government is also expected on Saturday to announce economic and social measures.In an increasingly deserted capital city, posters put up by the city authorities read: "The best option to prevent the propagation of the virus is to stay at home."