Wait till late summer at earliest for a holiday in EU, Merkel warns Britons
BRITISH tourists may have to wait until late summer to enjoy a holiday on the Continent due to the EU’s slow jab rollout.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned the bloc’s sluggish scheme means it will be a “few months” at best before widespread immunity is achieved.
EU leaders last night shelved plans for vaccination passports until the majority of Europeans have had inoculations.
They said it was still too early to make a decision on ditching travel restrictions, including a ban on British holidaymakers, because infection rates remain stubbornly high in EU states.
It came as a blow to Greece, Spain, Portugal and Croatia who were banking on hordes of Britons this summer to help kickstart their economies.
Germany and France believe it is more important to focus on reopening the bloc’s internal market before welcoming visitors. Plans for vaccine certificates to boost tourism are moving slowly due to bitter infighting among European countries. Mrs Merkel said: “As long as the number of those who have been vaccinated is still so much smaller than the number who are waiting for vaccination, the state should not treat the two groups differently.”
The EU has only vaccinated around six per cent of its population, while the UK has delivered doses to one in three adults.
It is understood the bloc may not lift travel restrictions until it has administered jabs to at least 70 per cent of all adults, a target it hopes to reach by September 21.
But Greece is expected to smash that goal, with its vaccine scheme already operating at a faster pace than the EU-wide average.
London-based analysts Airfinity said it could reach the target by as
early as August 25 if Athens is able to secure enough doses. They added that Portugal would hit 70 per cent by September 9 and Spain a day later.
But France is expected to miss the EU’s goal, only reaching it on September 25.
EU leaders said in a joint statement: “The epidemiological situation remains serious and the variants pose additional challenges.
“We must therefore uphold tight restrictions while stepping up efforts to accelerate the provisions of vaccines. We call for work to continue on a common approach to vaccination certificates and will come back to this.”
Austrian chancellor Sebastian Kurz said “green passports” could be used to allow vaccinated people to travel freely within the EU.
He said: “We want to get back to normal as quickly as possible.”
EU insiders have suggested such a scheme could be extended to Britain if our infection rates drop significantly.
One diplomat said: “If British vaccination plans work out then we could have that discussion.”
Greek officials are already in talks with their UK counterparts over how to use vaccine passports to welcome Britons to their country.
They hope the UK’s successful vaccination rollout will later this year pave the way for the resumption of mass travel between the two states.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s plan out of lockdown allows for the return of international travel after May 17.
Greece is confident allowing UK holidaymakers will not spark a new wave of infections because their levels are already much lower than the EU average.