Nearly all travellers will face quarantine
£1,000 fine if you break the rules ‘It’s idiotic. A two-week lockdown has no medical or scientific basis’
HOPES for foreign holidays are in doubt after officials revealed a blanket quarantine could soon be enforced for returning travellers.
in a blow to millions desperate for a summer getaway, the Government said the vast majority of those arriving into the UK by air, rail or sea will have to selfisolate for two weeks.
and travellers who breach the new quarantine rules could face an automatic £1,000 fine, it emerged last night.
The fine would be ten times that imposed for breaking other lockdown rules.
‘The quarantine period is going to be an important element in the next stage of tackling the virus and preventing a second wave,’ a Whitehall source told the Daily Mail. ‘We want people to understand that it is important and that we are serious about it.’
a limited list of travellers will be exempt, including lorry drivers, security and enforcement officials, airline and Eurostar staff, and scientists researching coronavirus.
The policy could begin as early as May 28, or possibly early June. The date will depend on when the UK’s coronavirus transmission rate is judged to be low enough for the measure to make a difference.
Every three weeks, the rule will be formally reviewed, but according to Transport Secretary Grant Shapps it could eventually be replaced by a less restrictive system of ‘air bridges’ between very low risk countries.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said travellers from France would not be exempt, adding that an earlier statement on talks with Emmanuel Macron had been misinterpreted. However, those returning from ireland will be exempt because of the need to preserve the common travel area rules under the Good Friday agreement. The common travel area also includes Jersey, Guernsey and the isle of Man.
The announcement prompted anger among airline bosses, who have been lobbying ministers to scrap plans for a blanket quarantine amid hopes of restarting flights in mid-June.
Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary attacked the rule as ‘idiotic and unimplementable’ and predicted it would be widely flouted.
He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme yesterday: ‘you don’t have enough police in the UK to implement a two-week lockdown. and what’s really worrying is that a twoweek lockdown has no medical or scientific basis to it in any event.
‘if you really want to do something that’s effective, wear masks.’
Last night, Tim alderslade, of trade body airlines UK, said: ‘airlines are not going to operate if people are effectively told not to travel and that is going to do a lot of damage both to our tourism industry and businesses who rely on aviation for their supply chains and exports.’
Meanwhile, British airways and Virgin atlantic said the quarantine rule would scupper plans to resume large-scale operations in July, with a target date of august now more likely.
airline bosses favour ‘travel corridors’ between low-risk countries and complain they have not been properly consulted on the proposals. ‘a review every three weeks is far too long,’ one senior industry source said. ‘it could devastate the industry.’