Ministers monitoring rising cases in France

A RISE in coronavirus infections in France is being closely monitored by ministers in Britain after Norway reimposed quarantine on travellers from the country.

France’s weekly rate has overtaken that of Portugal, which has reduced its cases to the extent that UK ministers are considering lifting the travel ban on the country next week.

Rising cases in Belgium, Andorra and the Bahamas mean they will this weekend be removed from the Government’s “green” list which exempts arrivals to the UK from self-isolating for 14 days. But Government sources stressed there would be no imminent decision on France as it recorded its highest daily number of new Covid-19 cases in two months.

Its 1,695 positive tests were only slightly fewer than the 1,772 in Spain.

Within hours of the French figures being released, Norway announced it was reimposing a 10-day quarantine for arrivals from France as well as Monaco, Switzerland, the Czech Republic and some Swedish regions.

Jean Castex, the French prime minister, has warned of a new lockdown if people fail to observe social distancing rules. Face masks are already compulsory in indoor public spaces, and many towns and cities have made them mandatory in crowded outdoor areas.

It is thought about 450,000 Britons are now holidaying in France.

“The sheer scale of British people on holiday in France at the moment is a logistical nightmare,” said Paul Charles, of travel consultancy The PC Agency.

“If the Government did add France, I would expect them to give at least 24 hours’ advance warning.

“France is very different from Spain, with so many links to the UK, and there are other countries with much more worrying rates.”

Belgium, Andorra and the Bahamas had rises to 21.6 cases per 100,000 of the population, 41.4 and 68.2 respectively, prompting their removal from the “green” list, but Malaysia and Brunei, are being added to it.

Portugal, which reported only 203 cases yesterday, has seen its coronavirus rate fall from 25.8 at the start of July to 12.5 per 100,000 in the past week.

Sources indicated Portugal could be added to the “green” list in the review at the end of next week if its cases continued on the same trajectory.

But there is alarm over the situation in Spain, where Aragon, not on the tourist trail, now has the highest rate of cases in Europe at 567 per 100,000.