France travel: fully jabbed travellers returning to UK must still quarantine over concerns of Beta variant

Anyone coming to the UK from France will have to quarantine for 10 days, even if they are fully vaccinated, the government has announced.

There has been speculation that restrictions on travel to and from France could be ramped up, over concerns about the Beta variant.

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At a glance: 5 key points

- People arriving in England from France must continue to quarantine for 10 days at home or in other accommodation, even if they are fully vaccinated against Covid-19

- From Monday, UK residents arriving from amber countries who are fully vaccinated will no longer have to quarantine, but the Government has now said this will not apply to France

- This is due to the persistent presence of cases in France of the Beta variant, which was first identified in South Africa.

- Anyone who has been in France in the last 10 days will need to quarantine on arrival to England in their own accommodation and will need a day two and day eight test, regardless of their vaccination status.

- This comes after Bulgaria banned travellers from the UK entering the country after the UK government moved them onto the Green list

What’s been said?

Health Secretary Sajid Javid said: “We have always been clear that we will not hesitate to take rapid action at our borders to stop the spread of Covid-19 and protect the gains made by our successful vaccination programme.

“With restrictions lifting on Monday across the country, we will do everything we can to ensure international travel is conducted as safely as possible, and protect our borders from the threat of variants.”

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said: “Travel will be different this year and whilst we are committed to continuing to open up international travel safely, our absolute priority is to protect public health here in the UK.

“We urge everyone thinking about going abroad this summer to check their terms and conditions as well as the travel restrictions abroad before they go.”

Henry Smith MP, chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Future of Aviation, said: “This announcement is a real setback to international travel.

“We all expected that the traffic light system would provide much-needed certainty yet our current approach has only delivered confusion which continues to prevent any meaningful recovery for our aviation, travel and tourism sectors.

“Yet again, a last-minute announcement raises significant questions about whether the traffic light system is fit for purpose in its current form and pushes the UK further behind Europe despite our world-leading vaccination programme.

“We cannot afford to continue with this on-again, off-again approach to international travel, which is leaving consumer confidence in tatters, pushing businesses to the brink and will lead to further job losses.”

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