France next on list as Rishi Sunak warns ‘we won’t hesitate’ to quarantine more countries
The Government has hinted that France could be next on the list of countries forcing returning travellers to face quarantine in the UK.
After Belgium, Andorra and the Bahamas were added to Spain, Luxembourg and Serbia last night, there are fears that a rise in coronavirus cases across the channel could mean the Government soon forces arrivals from France to self-isolate for a fortnight.
The Chancellor warned holidaymakers this morning that ‘there is always the risk of disruption to travel plans’ during a pandemic, when asked whether France may be the next nation added to the quarantine list.
Rishi Sunak told Sky News: ‘It’s a tricky situation. What I can say to people is we’re in the midst of a global pandemic and that means there is always the risk of disruption to travel plans and people need to bear that in mind.
‘It’s the right thing for us to do to keep everything under review on a constant basis talking with our scientists, our medical advisers, and if we need to take action as you’ve seen overnight we will of course not hesitate to do that, and we’re doing that to protect people’s health.’
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Last night it was announcing that arrivals to the UK from the three new countries will face quarantine from 4am on Saturday, August 8.
Belgium, Andorra and the Bahamas were removed from the government’s ‘safe list’ following a spike in coronavirus cases.
France and Malta remain classified as ‘safe’ for now, despite signs of a second wave in the former and cases in the latter trebling in recent weeks.
People who do not self-isolate when required can be fined up to £1,000 in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland and those returning to Scotland could be fined £480, with fines up to £5,000 for persistent offenders.
The government has repeatedly warned that it could make changes to the safe list ‘rapidly’ and it is likely more countries will be taken off the quarantine exemption list in the coming months, while others could be added on.
Meanwhile, arrivals to England from Brunei and Malaysia won’t have to quarantine so long as they haven’t been in or transited through any other non-exempt countries in the 14 days preceding their arrival and an air bridge with Portugal has also been rumoured.
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