Cleared for take-off, so please don’t dither

IT’S still nowhere near enough, but it’s a good start. The Government’s green travel list finally has some genuine tourist destinations on it.

Instead of contemplating a 16,000-mile round trip to the Falklands, from next Wednesday British families can holiday in the Balearics, Malta, or the Caribbean without having to quarantine.

Potentially even better news is that double-jabbed adults and children should soon be able to visit the much larger numbers of countries on the amber list – including most of Europe and North America – on relaxed green list terms.

For the travel sector, this is the lifeline it was praying for and represents a true victory for Transport Secretary Grant Shapps over the Cabinet’s lockdown addicts.

It also offers beleaguered families the real chance of a much-needed sunshine break in the school holidays – something that was previously little more than a pipe-dream.

There are still clouds on the horizon. Some European countries are considering a ban on British tourists because of the Delta variant spike.

Ministers are also warning that green list destinations are subject to rolling reviews and could be downgraded at short notice.

But for millions, summer now promises to be back on.

The big question now is when amber restrictions will change for the fully vaccinated. The logical date would be July 19, when domestic Covid restrictions are due to go. But there is speculation it may be well into August.

This would be a costly mistake. The aviation and travel industry have warned ‘the wolf is at the door’ right now. For thousands of businesses, even a week or two’s delay may mean the difference between survival and oblivion.

If it’s safe to liberalise the rules in August, why not on July 19? Every day counts.

But yesterday’s announcement was a real fillip and suggests that the PM may finally be regaining his courage.

There’s a long way to go but at least his nose is out of the rabbit hole.