All passengers arriving in the UK will need to prove that they do not have a coronavirus, showing a negative test result within 72 hours of the start of their journey.
Under the rules announced on Friday, anyone who does not produce evidence that he does not have Covid-19 will be fined £ 500 ($ 678). Travelers arriving from countries not on the government’s open travel corridor list will have to isolate themselves at home for 10 days, regardless of their test results.
Photographer: Chris J. Ratcliffe / Bloomberg
The measures, set by Transport Secretary Grant Shapps, will take effect next week for passengers arriving in the UK by plane, boat or train. The plan is to stop new Covid-19 strains coming to the UK, such as one identified in South Africa, as the government accelerates the launch of vaccines, Shapps said.
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“The South African version worries experts because the vaccine may not respond in the same way,” Shapps told LBC radio on Friday. “If that were the case, it would be a tragedy to allow this in the country.”
Entry into England will also be banned for those who have traveled to or from any South African country in the past 10 days, the government said, including Namibia, Zimbabwe and Botswana.
Ministers have been criticized for taking too long to impose border restrictions during the first wave of the spring pandemic. This week, Prime Minister Boris Johnson put the country in shape the third national blockage as infection rates increased. The death toll from the coronavirus now stands at over 78,000.
The airlines hit
Governments across Europe are extending travel borders to and from the UK to protect against a rapidly spreading strain that occurred last month. Taken together, the moves have forced the heavily hit airline industry to cut back on programs in the first half of 2021.
“British aviation is once again effectively closed,” Karen Dee, executive director of the Airport Operators Association, said in a statement. “This has worsened the devastating situation for UK airports and communities that rely on aviation.”
Airline lobbying industry UK requested that pre-departure testing be a short-term measure and that the journey return to normal as soon as the vaccine launch accelerates.
Ministers should now focus on creating a common international standard, said Heathrow Airport chief John Holland-Kaye, who called for the use of tests to increase passenger numbers. The call was resumed by the World Travel & Tourism Council in London, which said there were still uncertainties about the type of tests that would be accepted. This required wide access and accessibility.
Ryanair Holdings Plc, EasyJet Plc and British Airways is among the carriers that has reduced its schedules this week, with Ryanair declaring that it will offer several flights from January 21 until the boarding.
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Complex discussions
Government officials have been discussing for several days how to coordinate border policy in all four nations in the UK, which have control over their own transport policies. In a separate statement, the Scottish government said it agreed with the plan and that action would be taken as soon as possible.
Welsh Prime Minister Mark Drakeford told the BBC on Friday that he strongly supports the new rules and expects them to apply in the UK
Passengers will be required to report negative test results prior to boarding and will be stopped if necessary. There will be some exemptions from the new rules, including for carriers, children under the age of 11 and for travelers leaving countries without adequate testing infrastructure.
On Thursday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson presented his plan for a mass vaccination program to protect around 15 million elderly and vulnerable people in the UK and their carers by a self-imposed deadline of 15 February. After that, the government will consider whether to start lifting some of the deadlock rules.
– With the assistance of Alastair Reed, Rodney Jefferson, Emily Ashton, Siddharth Vikram Philip and Christopher Jasper
(Updates to the airport operators’ statement in the sixth subparagraph)