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All countries on travel red list to be removed as system is ‘less effective’ in slowing Omicron
JUST IN: The red list is getting scrapped
All eleven countries on the travel red list will be removed from tomorrow as the system is ‘less effective in slowing the incursion’ of the Omicron variant, Sajid Javid has announced.
According to BBC News, the health secretary said the countries will be taken off the list from 4am tomorrow – Wednesday December 15th – meaning that passengers travelling from those locations will no longer have to isolate in a government-approved quarantine hotel for two weeks.
He added that the temporary testing measures for everyone arriving in the UK from overseas will remain for now.
Javid told parliament today: “Now that there is community transmission of Omicron in the UK and Omicron has spread so widely across the world, the travel red list is now less effective in slowing the incursion of Omicron from abroad.
“Whilst we will maintain our temporary testing measures for international travel we will be removing all eleven countries from the travel red list effective from 4am tomorrow morning.”
Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe are on the list.
As it stands, all UK arrivals from these countries must pay for and self-isolate in a pre-booked, government-approved hotel for ten days, a rule that has left some travellers thousands of pounds out of pocket.
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They must also take Covid tests within forty-eight hours of setting off for the UK and PCR tests within two days of their arrival.
The health secretary said he had asked for urgent advice on whether those currently in managed quarantine would be able to leave early.
He also said he was ‘very persuaded’ by calls to reimburse people and hoped to make an announcement soon.