LONDON – More countries have announced plans to ban flights from Britain following several European nations’ similar decisions, as a new and more transmissible strain of COVID-19 has been reported in Britain.
TRAVEL BANS
Canada is to halt the entry of passenger flights from Britain for 72 hours from midnight Sunday, authorities said, making it one of the latest nations to take action over the situation in Britain.
Romania decided to suspend all flights to and from Britain on December 21, while the Turkish government said temporary suspension has been decided for flights from Britain and a few other nations to Turkey.
Britain’s neighbor Ireland announced a ban on all flights flying into Ireland from Britain effective on December 21. People in Britain, regardless of nationality, should not travel to Ireland, by air or sea, according to a statement on the government’s website.
The domino effect of travel restrictions has been growing amid rising concern over the situation in Britain, as Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Saturday announced stronger coronavirus restrictions to combat an alarming surge in infections linked to a virulent new strain.
“New variant may be up to 70 percent more transmissible,” he told a Downing Street virtual press conference, adding the spread is being driven by the new variant of the virus.
After the announcement was made, the Netherlands became the first major European country to announce a ban on flights to Britain, followed by neighboring Belgium which also halted Britain-bound trains using the Channel Tunnel. Austria and Italy also followed suit.
France decided to suspend from December 21 midnight for 48 hours all travel from Britain, “including people related to the transport of goods, by road, air, sea or rail,” according to the Prime Minister’s Office.
A German government spokesperson said Sunday that Germany plans to limit travel possibilities with Britain and another country.
China suspends air flights between China and UK
China on December 24 suspended flights between China and the United Kingdom after the UK recently reported a new strain of the coronavirus, Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said on December 24.
Given the exceptional nature of the new virus variant and its potential impact, China made the decision after a full assessment to safeguard the health and people-to-people exchanges between China and other countries, Wang told reporters at a regular news briefing in Beijing.
“China has taken reference to the practices of other countries,” he said, adding that China will closely follow the situation and make adjustments in due course.