UK to impose 14-day quarantine for incoming travellers from today

The UK will impose a 14-day quarantine period for incoming travellers from today, despite strong opposition from several industry quarters.

Three airlines — British Airways, Ryanair and easyJet — have complained to the British government in protest at the measures they say are “disproportionate and unfair on British citizens as well as international visitors arriving in the UK”.

Under the new UK rules, residents and visitors travelling to the UK on or after June 8 must provide journey and contact details, and self-isolate for the first 14 days. This means they cannot leave the place they are staying except in very limited circumstances.

Exceptions are made for people entering from Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. Those who fall foul of the rules in England and Northern Ireland face fines of up to £1,000 (€1,120).

A letter British Airways, Ryanair and easyJet sent to the UK government alleges there is no “valid justification for the blanket nature of the regulations”, which it describes as “extremely severe”.

The plans have drawn vociferous opposition from the UK travel industry. More than 200 companies wrote to the government last week calling for them to be scrapped.

Critics have questioned how imposing quarantine on people from elsewhere in Europe makes sense when the countries they are coming from have lower coronavirus infection rates than the UK.

The airlines’ statement says the quarantine imposed on UK arrivals is “more stringent than the guidelines applied to people who actually have COVID-19”. It also alleges other anomalies as the rules don’t apply to people living in Scotland, or to French or German workers commuting weekly to the UK.