Brits travelling to France must now self-isolate on arrival – UK added to quarantine list because of Indian variant

France has added the UK to is mandatory quarantine list.

Anyone travelling to the country from Britain or Northern Ireland will have to self-isolate, due to concerns over a rise in cases of the Indian variant.

French government spokesman Gabriel Attal announced the news after a cabinet meeting today, adding that further details on the compulsory isolation would be given in "the coming hours".

France is on the UK's amber list, which means anyone travelling from the country must isoalte for ten days.

They must also test negative for Covid before travelling and take a second Covid test two days after arrival.

France had previously warned of fresh UK travel restrictions, but said it would not go as far as an outright ban.

French foreign affairs minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told RTL radio over the weekend: "We worry about the Indian variant and we remain on high alert regarding that matter, in co-operation with British authorities."

"We hope that the variant can be controlled in a country which experienced real failures during the pandemic.

"However, the arrival of the Indian variant and the increase of cases of Indian variant in the United Kingdom pose a problem and so we are vigilant about this [and] in contact with the British authorities."

The news comes just a day after Austria announced a ban on direct flights from the UK.

Only Austrian citizens and residents will be allowed into the country from the United Kingdom from June 1. 

Germany was the first to place a travel ban on the UK over the weekend, over Covid variant fears.

Since midnight on Sunday,  people travelling to Germany from Great Britain and Northern Ireland may only enter the country if they are a German citizen or resident.

Spouses and children under 18 of a German citizen or resident can also enter, as long as the household are travelling together.

Those with an urgent humanitarian reason such as an immediate family bereavement are also able to enter, however anyone entering the country from the UK must quarantine for two weeks on arrival, even if they test negative for the coronavirus.

People who are only transferring from one flight to another will still be allowed in – but they must remain in the airport transit area.

The new Covid variant from India is spreading at an alarming rate in the UK, putting lockdown easing at risk.

Some parts are more affected than others, leaving millions of Brits with questions about what its emergence means.

The good news is, there is confidence that fully vaccinated people will have a decent level of protection against disease caused by the variant.

But those unvaccinated, or with only one dose, are more at risk.

Cases are in relatively small numbers on a national scale, but it's the rapid growth that is of concern.

Public Health England (PHE) reports there are almost 3,500 cases in the UK, of which 3,245 are in England.

The data is up to May 19. More recent data from the Covid-19 Genomics UK Consortium (COG-UK) suggests the true number is double that, at 6,431. Although this is a preliminary number.

    Source: Read Full Article

    Previous post Spain green list: Will the country be on the UK travel list?
    Next post Cheap seaside hotel rooms in the UK this summer from £29 per stay