THE HAGUE (AP) – The Netherlands is banning flights from the UK for at least the rest of the year, in an attempt to ensure that a new strain of coronavirus that crosses the south of England does not reach its shores.
The ban went into effect on Sunday morning, and the government said it was reacting to tougher measures imposed on Saturday by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on tougher measures in London and surrounding areas. The Netherlands said it would assess “together with other European Union countries the possibilities of limiting imports of the virus from the United Kingdom”.
Johnson said a new rapid variant of the virus, which is 70% more communicable than existing strains, appears to be driving the rapid spread of new infections in London and southern England.
“There is no evidence to suggest that it is more lethal or causes more severe disease,” the prime minister said, or that vaccines will be less effective against him.
The Dutch government is already advising its citizens not to travel unless absolutely necessary.
There was no immediate word on what the Dutch government intended to do about the ferries traveling between Britain and the Netherlands.
The United Kingdom has warned the World Health Organization that the new variant identified this week appears to accelerate the spread of COVID-19, saying it accounted for about 60% of the capital’s cases.
Viruses move regularly, and scientists have discovered thousands of different mutations among virus samples that cause COVID-19. But many of these changes have no effect on how easily the virus spreads or how severe the symptoms are.
The UK recorded more than 67,000 deaths from the pandemic, the second highest confirmed value in Europe after Italy. The Netherlands has recorded more than 10,500 virus-related deaths.
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