Spain and US could join England’s high-risk red list requiring hotel quarantine for all arrivals
SPAIN and the US could be added to England's high-risk red list of 33 countries.
This means all travel to and from the country would be banned, excluding British nationals returning home.
In addition, anyone entering England from these two countries would be required to self-isolate for ten days at a government-approved quarantine hotel, costing up to £1,750 per person.
According to the Department Of Transport met with health officials yesterday to discuss the latest date on new variants in both Spain and the US.
A decision will be made on whether to add the countries to the red list at the Cabinet Covid operations committee this week.
Both countries have seen local transmission of new variants that are of concern to the UK.
Spain's coronavirus cases is currently 3.1m, with more than 66,000 deaths - lower than the UK but one of the worst in Europe - while the US's Covid cases are the highest in the world at 28m, and more than 500,000 deaths.
There are around 1,000 people arriving from the US each day and 500 from Spain.
If added, Spain and the US would join 33 countries on the UK's travel ban list which includes Portugal, South America and South African nations.
A recent study by the World Health Organisation (WHO) found dozens of countries with cases of the South African and Brazilian variants - which include France, Greece, Switzerland, Austria, Denmark and Sweden in Europe, as well as Canada and the US - which are not on the Government's high-risk list.
A government source told the newspaper: "The US and Spain are on the list so it means some of the bigger markets will be considered by officials as part of the discussions before being put to ministers.
“It will be based on evidence from the Joint Biosecurity Centre (JBC)."
Currently, travelling abroad for a holiday is banned under the new UK lockdown, but this hasn't stopped people travelling for work or health reasons.
Hopes for holidays to resume by summer have been quashed by MPs, who warn it is 'too early' to make the decision.
A Spanish summer holiday may no longer be the case, despite hopes from the Spain authorities of resuming the tourism for the peak holiday season.
Tourism chief Fernando Valdes said: “The UK is among the countries with the highest vaccination rates in the world.
"In Spain, we aim to have at least 70 per cent of the adult population immune by summer so I’d say to British people, ‘Keep open your expectations regarding holidays in Spain. We’re looking forward to welcoming you again’.”
Spain hotel boss Gabriel Escarrer has warned that the country won't survive this summer until holidaymakers can return.
He wrote on Twitter: "Spain will not endure a second summer without tourism."
Anyone returning to the UK from Spain and the US currently needs to have a negative coronavirus test, taken no more than 72 hours before, followed by two further Covid tests on day 2 and day 8 of a 10-day quarantine at home.
They are also required to fill in a Passenger Locator Form.
The new hotel quarantine scheme, which was introduced on Monday, means all high-risk arrivals must quarantine for 10 days at a government-mandated hotel.
Costing £1,750 per person, this includes the two mandatory coronavirus tests, which needed to be conducted on day 2 and day 8 of quarantine, the hotel room and all meals.
A second person sharing a room pays £650 while children pay £325. If someone tests positive on day eight of the quarantine, then they then must pay an additional £1,200 to isolate further.
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Meanwhile, Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary predicted recently that Brits would "flock to the Spanish beaches" this summer due to the vaccine rollout.
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He said, once the vaccination reduces the number of coronavirus-related deaths: "We expect to see a very strong return of British families travelling to the beaches of Spain, Portugal, Italy and Greece in relative safety this summer thanks to the vaccine programme."
Mr O'Leary added: "I think [there will be a] strong return to travel and normality for the travel sector by the end of 2021."