STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - The Swedish government said on Friday it had decided to ban all public gatherings of more than 50 people to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

“Our resilience is being tested. The aim of the government is of course to limit the spread as much as possible,” Prime Minister Stefan Lofven told a news conference. “The government has decided to ban public gatherings of more than 50 people.”

The new rule will come into force on Sunday and those who break it risk fines or up to 6 months in prison. The government had previously banned all gatherings of more than 500 people.