UK Quarantine Measures Come into Force
7th June 2020
Last modified on May 14th, 2021
People will need to self-quarantine for 14-days with some counties introducing reciprocal arrangements. The tourist industry criticises but some say it is far too late.
From Monday 8th June, most people arriving in the UK are required to self-isolate for 14-days and give details of their accommodation.
People who have gone on holiday to the Alps, the Pyrenees or any other holiday destinations will need to follow the rules or face a £1,000 fine.
Three airlines have written to the UK government to protest against its “wholly unjustified and disproportionate” quarantine rules.
The airlines – BA, RyanAir and EasyJet – say the measures are harsher than those imposed on people confirmed to have coronavirus.
They are asked to isolate and do not face criminal sanctions for failing to do so.
Their letter also said it was “illogical and irrational” to impose quarantine on people arriving from EU countries that have lower infection rates than Britain.
The Channel Tunnel’s owner has also written to Boris Johnson calling for his “urgent intervention” to solve issues around the quarantine rules.
Jacques Gounon, head of Getlink, said the plans are “fraught with problems” and put “a serious risk on the efficiency of operations at the Channel Tunnel”.
For us people that love the mountains, in the summer and the winter, it means visits are pretty much off the agenda.
The government says the measures are needed to surpress the virus and that introducing such quarantine measures earlier would have been of limited value at the time.
The Home Secretary, Priti Patel, has said the measures were designed “to prevent a second wave” of covid-19.
It comes as ski resorts are now opening in the Alps.
Ski resorts in the Alps open for skiing
Summer skiing starts in Austria
Summer in Les2Alpes. Image © PlanetSKI.
Who is exempt from the UK’s new rules?
- Road haulage and freight workers
- Medical and care professionals providing essential healthcare
- Those arriving for pre-arranged medical treatment
- Passengers in transit, if they do not pass through border control
- Seasonal agricultural workers if they self-isolate where they are working
- UK residents who ordinarily travel overseas at least once a week for work
People coming into the UK should be tested for coronavirus “within days” of their arrival, the leader of the Labour opposition party, Sir Keir Starmer, has said.
He said the new rule was a “blunt instrument” used too late, at a time when other countries were lifting travel restrictions.
“I actually would much prefer to see some sort of testing regime at the airport” or “within days of [people] coming in”, he said to LBC Radio.
The quarantine has also provoked fierce criticism from the aviation and travel industries, with Ryanair saying it would be ineffective and is a “political stunt”.
