Isolation rules to be dropped for some people returning to the UK
SUMMER HOLIDAYS abroad to some popular destinations could become easier as the requirement to self-isolate for 14 days upon returning to the UK will be scrapped.
Trips to France, Greece and Spain look on the cards after the Government confirmed it will revise the quarantine measures at Monday’s review.
In place of the quarantine arrangements, there will be a traffic light system, with officials placing countries into green, amber and red categories based on the prevalence of coronavirus within each nation’s borders.
Only passengers arriving into the UK from nations in the red category, where the spread of coronavirus is deemed to be high, will be told to self-isolate for two weeks.
All travellers will still have to hand over the address they plan to reside at on their return, no
matter which country they are coming back from.
As well as allowing holidays abroad to take place this summer, the Government said the changes would provide a “vital lifeline for UK travel operators and those whose jobs rely on the travel industry”.
A Government spokeswoman said: “Our public health measures at the border were put in place to manage the risk of imported cases and help prevent a second wave of the virus, and will continue to support our fight against coronavirus.
“Our new risk-assessment system will enable us to carefully open a number of safe travel routes around the world – giving people the opportunity for a summer holiday abroad and boosting the UK economy through tourism and business.”
The quarantine measures have come in for heavy criticism since they were brought in this month. But easing the rules will come with tighter measures for maskwearing.
The Foreign Office is also set to change its travel advice warning against all but essential travel, with Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab agreeing to lift the warning for countries and territories where the public health risk is no longer “unacceptably high”.