Travel sick! PM hints at tougher rules on holidays
HOPES of foreign summer holidays were dealt a fresh blow last night as Boris Johnson warned that they ‘certainly look difficult for the time being’ – and he even hinted at tougher controls.
The Prime Minister said it was ‘too early to say’ whether summer breaks abroad would be possible amid a surge in infections and cases of mutant Covid strains in Europe.
It potentially sets him on a collision course with backbench MPs who yesterday stepped up calls for travel to be re-opened for summer holidays in lower risk countries.
And it follows the news that Britons face £5,000 fines for going abroad on holiday from Monday, with the threat of penalties remaining in place until the end of June.
France is also likely to be added by the end of the week to a ‘red list’ of countries requiring hotel quarantine.
Asked about the prospect of holidays at last night’s Downing Street press conference, Mr Johnson said: ‘A lot of people do want to know about what’s going to happen
nMINISTERS are considering toughening up border measures for hauliers from France by making them take Covid tests before entering.
Whitehall sources confirmed the measure is being mulled over by officials after Boris Johnson hinted restrictions could be beefed up at last night’s Downing Street press conference.
Hauliers coming from France, where cases of the South African variant are surging, can currently enter the UK without needing a test. But proof of a negative lateral flow test could soon be demanded. The PM said: ‘We keep all these measures under review.’ on the holiday front and I know there’s a great deal of curiosity and interest.
‘All I can say is it’s just too early to say and so my advice to everybody is to wait for the global travel taskforce to report.
‘We’ve heard already there are other European countries where the disease is now rising, so things certainly look difficult for the time being but we’ll be able to say more we hope in a few days’ time.’
He said that he would be able to say more about plans for travel on April 5, a week earlier than thought, when he receives a report from the Government’s global travel taskforce. It is being led by Transport Secretary Grant Shapps. Under the Government’s official roadmap out of lockdown, the re- start date for foreign holidays can be no earlier than May 17. Whitehall sources have confirmed that the taskforce is veering towards recommending a ‘traffic light’-style scheme, under which quarantine-free holidays abroad would only be possible to destinations designated ‘green’.
Mr Johnson also suggested border measures could soon be toughened for hauliers entering from France or for travellers arriving from non-red list countries. Earlier, Professor Neil Ferguson, the government adviser who sparked lockdown, said that people should not plan to holiday abroad this summer, while Health Secretary Matt Hancock stressed the Government was taking a ‘cautious approach’ to re-starting international travel.
Senior Tory MPs threatening to revolt over the issue yesterday piled pressure on the PM to set out a ‘clear’ roadmap for lifting the blanket ban on holidays from May 17. Henry Smith, Tory chairman of the all-party Future of Aviation Group, said: ‘Our aviation, travel and tourism industries have been amongst the hardest hit by Covid-19 and they desperately need a roadmap out of the restrictions as well as clear criteria on how and when they can restart.’
But Professor Ferguson called for foreign holidays to be banned until at least ‘late summer’. He told the BBC that no one should enjoy leisure trips abroad until all adults have been vaccinated.
However, Paul Charles, chief executive of the travel consultancy PC Agency, said: ‘People are craving to see their families overseas or their fiancees or other significant relatives. Travel is not just about holidays and it’s vital for travel to restart on 17 May safely and responsibly.’
Meanwhile, Carl Heneghan, a professor of evidence-based medicine at Oxford University, backs holidays getting under way once the over-50s and vulnerable groups have been inoculated.
He said: ‘We have to be mindful now that the harms of staying in lockdown are getting to the point where they’ve gone beyond any benefits.’ It came as British Airways and easyJet sparked anger by axing dozens of summer holiday flights in July and August.
But the carriers insisted the cancellations were simply part of a routine review of flight schedules.