The Central Government denies claims made by the police union concerning a lack of protective equipment during the Lock Down.
It was an opposition MP from the Partido Popular, Jaime de Olano, who submitted the question in written form before the Parliament; “is it true that the Guardia Civil and Policía Nacional have been lacking the necessary personal-protection equipment whilst carrying out their duties during this Covid-19 crisis?”.
“The police forces have been able to count on the necessary protection measures for them to be able to carry out their duty,” replied the governmental Spokesperson, adding that all patrol units have their protection kits.
The Government also have ordered personnel shift rosters that reduce the risk of contagion between members of the same police force; i.e., they don’t overlap.
Last Monday the Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, put the number of police officers infected by coronavirus at 2,835, the vast majority (2,120) of whom are Guardia Civil officers, seven of whom have died. Four Policía Nacional officers have also succumbed to the virus.
Despite this toll, police officers are included within the low-risk sectors, despite their daily contact with the public.
However, no sooner than the pandemia was declared the Ministry of the Interior published an order stating that police officers, no matter which service they belonged to, were entitled to “efficient protection,” whilst working.
The Government Spokesperson also pointed out that the Heads of the Policía Nacional and the Guardia Civil are responsible for adopting the necessary measures to ensure that the work equipment of personnel under them is adequate for protecting their health and safety.
Nevertheless, the growing number of officers infected and the unanimous complaints made by police unions about a lack of protection might put this into doubt.
Editorial comment: you can bet your bottom dollar that our MPs have all the necessary protective measures even though they do not have to deal with the public day in, day out, like our Guardia Civil officers.
(News: Spain)