Last checked at 
* IAG boss Walsh says looking at legal action
* Says govt did not consult industry over new legislation
* Relations between BA and govt strained under COVID
* IAG shares up 12%
(Adds PM spokesman comment, details of Walsh's letter)
By Sarah Young
LONDON, June 5 (Reuters) - The owner of British Airways is
considering a legal challenge to Britain's quarantine plan, as
relations between airlines and the government are frayed by
steps to curb the coronavirus pandemic.
With planes around the world grounded since late March,
airlines had hoped to start flying from July. But Britain's
14-day quarantine, due to be introduced on June 8 for arrivals
from abroad, will hamper that recovery, say bosses.
Willie Walsh, the chief executive of IAG, said the
industry had not been consulted on the quarantine plan and he
expected other airlines to consider their legal options too.
Ryanair Group CEO Michael O'Leary has described the
plan as "useless" and a threat to the tourism industry, while
Walsh said it would torpedo any return to flying in July.
"We think it is irrational, we think it is disproportionate
and we are giving consideration to a legal challenge to this
legislation," he told Sky News on Friday.
Britain's big airlines, IAG's British Airways (BA), easyJet
and Virgin Atlantic, have between them announced almost
20,000 job cuts to prepare for a smaller travel market after the
pandemic.
Relations between BA and the government have come under
increasing strain as the crisis has progressed.
A junior transport minister agreed with a lawmaker on
Wednesday who said BA should "pay a price" for putting thousands
of staff on notice of redundancy while accessing the
government's salary support scheme.
Walsh and the head of BA then declined to attend a meeting
with Britain's interior minister on Thursday to discuss
quarantine plans.
"Obviously we are disappointed they chose not to attend the
meeting," a spokesman for Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on
Friday.
Walsh wrote to lawmakers on Thursday defending BA's plans to
cut up to 12,000 jobs and explaining that, while not flying, BA
was burning through about 20 million pounds ($25 million) of
cash a day. He said he had not had any contact with transport
ministers since March 18.
Company chiefs and some lawmakers have questioned why the
quarantine plan is being brought in now when infection levels
across Europe are much lower than they were months ago.
The government's chief scientific adviser Patrick Vallance
said on Wednesday that politicians decided the policy, adding
quarantines worked best for restricting travel from countries
with high infection rates.
There are hopes that some quarantine requirements could be
replaced with air bridges, or bi-lateral agreements between
Britain and other countries to allow unrestricted travel.
IAG shares were up 12% at 1319 GMT, as tourism-related
stocks gained on hopes the worst of the crisis is over.
($1 = 0.7883 pounds)
(Reporting by Sarah Young, additional reporting by Michael
Holden and William James; editing by Kate Holton and Mark
Potter)
