Government adds five countries to travel corridors list Portugal snubbed
The government has added five new countries to its list of countries people from England can travel without needing to quarantine on return, but has left Portugal off.
It had been widely expected that the Iberian nation would be added to the “travel corridor” list, having been snubbed when the initial list was released three weeks ago.
From 28 July, Estonia, Latvia, Slovakia, Slovenia and St Vincent and the Grenadines will be added to the list, the DfT confirmed.
The decision met with frustration in Portugal, with foreign minister Augusto Silva saying that it was “neither substantiated nor backed by the facts”.
Millions of British holidaymakers flock to the Algarve every year, meaning Portugal’s vital tourist industry is likely to take a considerable hit.
Despite a recent surge in new cases, Spain remained on the list of approved countries.
In a statement, however, the DfT said: “We are prepared to respond rapidly if the health situation of a country deteriorates”.
Other countries such as Norway have banned travel to Spain, where the latest data from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) showed COVID-19 infections in Spain had risen to 30.9 per 100,000 inhabitants.
At the beginning of June the UK government imposed a mandatory 14-day quarantine on all incoming travellers due to coronavirus fears.
The move was deeply unpopular with lawmakers and businesses alike, who said the move could have a huge impact on the country’s ability to recover from the pandemic.
At the beginning of July an initial list of 59 countries was released to which English people could travel without the need to self-isolate.
The DfT said that the list would remain subject to review every 28 days.