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(Adds legal comment)
By Natalie Thomas and Kate Holton
LONDON, June 8 (Reuters) - Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary said
he believed Britain's coronavirus quarantine will be struck down
by the courts or dropped within weeks as some of Europe's
biggest airlines prepare to file a legal challenge by the end of
Tuesday.
The 14-day quarantine for international arrivals, introduced
on Monday, has led to the most vociferous clash between a major
industry and Prime Minister Boris Johnson's government during
the COVID-19 crisis.
By insisting on the quarantine despite public pleas from
airline veterans such as IAG's Willie Walsh and O'Leary, Britain
has united some of the fiercest rivals in aviation who are
already reeling from a sudden global halt in air travel.
O'Leary said he hoped a court would hear an emergency legal
challenge by the end of this week to halt the quarantine -
imposed just as most European countries were reopening their
economies.
"I think in their heart of hearts, the government would like
the courts to strike it down because it would get them off the
hook," the Ryanair chief told Reuters TV. "I think either the
courts will strike it down this week or the government will
quietly drop it before the end of June."
The legal action, proposed by British Airways and
supported by low-cost rivals Ryanair and easyJet
, is seeking injunctive relief and legal papers are due
to be filed on Monday or Tuesday, he added.
Lawyer Tom Snelling, at Signature Litigation, said the
government would have to show the measure was anchored in
scientific evidence and not politics.
Slow to introduce lockdown measures and with one of the
highest death tolls in the world, at more than 50,000, Britain
argues a quarantine is needed to prevent a second surge of
COVID-19.
The government did not respond to O'Leary's remarks.
'RUSHED THROUGH'
The quarantine imposes fines of up to 1,000 pounds ($1,270)
for any breaches.
The three airlines believe the measure is ineffective as
passengers can still board public transport on leaving an
airport, and it is hard to enforce.
Walsh, the head of BA-owner IAG, told LBC Radio they would
argue the legislation was irrational, while easyJet boss Johan
Lundgren said it had been rushed through.
"It's not in proportion," Lundgren told Sky News.
The quarantine will be reviewed every three weeks, the
government says. It is also looking at "air bridges" that allow
tourists to travel between two countries without needing to
quarantine.
"It wouldn't be that surprising if we're looking actually at
a slightly different type of measure fairly soon, possibly even
within the first three-week review cycle,” Snelling said.
O'Leary said Britons were booking outbound flights for
holidays despite the quarantine, but Europeans were not coming
to Britain.
(Additional reporting by Sarah Young and Estelle Shirbon;
editing by Guy Faulconbridge, Jason Neely, Pravin Char and Giles
Elgood)
