Government considering ‘air bridges’ to countries with similar Covid-19 infection rate
Transport secretary Grant Shapps has confirmed that the government is considering “air bridges” between the UK and other countries with a low coronavirus infection rate, potentially cutting out the need to quarantine all arrivals.
Last weekend Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that all incoming travellers to the UK would have to be quarantined for 14 days on arrival.
The plan met with dismay from many in the aviation industry, who said the measures would damage the UK’s ability to recover economically from the crisis.
Heathrow Airport was among those to suggest that to get round the stringent plans the UK should seek to establish “travel bubbles” with countries with similar low rates of infection.
Speaking to MPs in parliament today, Shapps said: “It is the case that we should consider further improvements, for example things like air bridges enabling people from other countries who have themselves achieved lower levels of coronavirus infection to come to the country.
“So those are active discussions but will go beyond what will initially be a blanket situation”, he added.
He also confirmed that the quarantine measures would come into place in June, not at the end of May as Johnson had said.
Earlier today the Prime Minister’s spokesman said that the measures would be reviewed every three weeks after their introduction.
Uncertainty remains over whether travellers from France will be exempt from the measures, a move that the government had initially touted, but later pulled back on.
Airline bosses have been among the most outspoken critics of the schemes, with Ryanair’s Michael O’Leary labelling the move as “nonsense”.
British Airways and Virgin Atlantic have both said they would be unlikely to begin to increase service levels in July if the quarantine plan was implemented.