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Empty aisles at London Heathrow Airport: Great Britain has so far only allowed international travel under certain circumstances
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Leon Neal / Getty Images
Great Britain wants to decide on the possibility of international travel at the beginning of May and introduce a traffic light system for this.
Accordingly, international travel could be possible again from May 17, as Transport Minister Grant Shapps announced.
"The framework announced today will help us resume travel safely and sustainably," said Shapps.
"It ensures that we protect the hard-earned victories of our vaccination campaign and gives both passengers and industry peace of mind when we start traveling abroad again."
The government wants to classify countries in red, yellow or green categories, depending on how great the risks are in the respective target country.
The government is also opening up prospects for airlines and travel companies that previously pressed for a declaration with a view to the upcoming summer vacation season.
Compulsory testing and quarantine depending on the category
Currently, the UK only allows international travel under certain government specified circumstances.
However, the country is gradually coming out of strict winter lockdown due to its successful vaccination campaign.
The number of cases has fallen dramatically since peaking in January.
The factors that decide which category a country falls into under the new system include, for example, how high the proportion of the vaccinated population is in the target country and the level of the infection rate.
Under the new traffic light system, restrictions such as hotel quarantine, domestic quarantine and mandatory corona tests should apply differently, depending on which country category a traveler comes from.
A government-formed working group on the matter said it was working with the travel industry and private coronavirus testing providers to keep the costs down for the UK public.
"This could include cheaper testing when vacationers return home, as well as asking whether the government would be able to provide testing before departure," it said in a statement.
However, the perspective does not go far enough for the travel industry.
The British airline Easyjet said, according to the BBC, the politicians risk with their plans to turn the clock back to a time when only wealthy people could afford to travel.
apr / Reuters