Race to get back to UK

100,000 tourists face scramble for flights before new test rules on arrivals kick in

THOUSANDS of British travellers face a desperate race home to avoid being stranded abroad after the Government banned arrivals without proof of a negative Covid-19 test.

Ministers agreed the move on Thursday night amid mounting pressure to tighten borders in a bid to stem the spread of mutant virus strains such as the South African variant.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said yesterday the rules will kick in on ‘Wednesday or Thursday’. It means travellers who do not return home before then face being stranded if they cannot get a Covid-19 test within 72 hours of their departure.

It is estimated around 100,000 Britons are currently abroad, mostly in popular holiday destinations such as Dubai, the Maldives and the Caribbean.

The Maldives and Caribbean are reported to have much lower or stretched testing capacity, adding to travellers’ anxiety.

It is understood officials are drawing up a list of ‘countries without the infrastructure available to deliver the tests’ from which arrivals will be exempt from the rules.

The Department of Transport is expected to set out next week details of testing standards required and which countries will be exempt. Under the new rules, which will apply to Britons and foreign nationals, travellers will have to quarantine for ten days – even if they test negative – after arriving from a ‘red list’ country with high rates of Covid-19.

They will be able to leave isolation if a second test, which can be taken from day five, is negative.

All travellers on flights, ferries or trains bound for the UK will require a ‘passenger locator form’ and face a £500 fine if they fail to comply. Children under 11 will be exempt, as will hauliers.

Travel operators accused the Government of rushing out the plan without consulting them, while airlines said they had received no information about which tests will be acceptable and how to check they have been done properly.

It means there is no end in sight for quarantine rules. Industry leaders say pre-flight testing should have led to further reductions or the complete scrapping of self-isolation requirements.

Heathrow airport boss John Holland-Kaye said: ‘This can only be a temporary measure. We need a roadmap for how we get out of this because aviation is vital to us.’