Last checked at 
* UK to detail hotel quarantine plan later - minister
* BBC says would apply to S.Africa, S.America, Portugal
* Minister says people should not book summer vacations
* UK travel industry worried about measures
(Adds UK interior minister, travel groups)
By Kate Holton and Michael Holden
LONDON, Jan 26 (Reuters) - Britain will announce on Tuesday
whether it will bring in mandatory quarantine in hotels for some
or all arrivals, the country's coronavirus vaccination minister
said as he warned the public not to book summer vacations.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said he was looking at the
option of introducing quarantine hotels for those coming to
Britain to prevent the risk of "vaccine-busting" new coronavirus
variants entering the country.
Nadhim Zahawi, the minister responsible for the rollout of
the United Kingdom's COVID-19 vaccination programme, said
details would come later on Tuesday.
"The government is looking at, as the prime minister has
confirmed, the hotel quarantine policy, and we'll make an
announcement on this in the appropriate way," he told BBC TV.
Home Secretary (interior minister) Priti Patel, whose
department is responsible for border security, told parliament
existing measures were under review and the government would not
hesitate to take further action.
"It would be wrong to speculate about any measures that are
not in place right now as policy is being developed," Patel told
lawmakers.
Britain has suffered a sharp rise in infections and deaths
in the new year, fuelled partly by a new more highly contagious
variant of the virus first identified in southeast England.
There has been concern about the impact of other strains
discovered in South Africa and Brazil, and whether these
variants might impact on the effectiveness of vaccines which are
seen as key to Britain's way out from strict lockdown measures.
The country has the world's fifth worst death toll from the
pandemic, with 98,531 people dying within 28 days of a positive
test, and one of the deepest economic contractions on record.
Official figures on Tuesday showed the unemployment rate had hit
its highest level in nearly five years.
The BBC reported the new hotel quarantine requirement would
mean arrivals from most of southern Africa and South America, as
well as Portugal, would have to isolate in a hotel for 10 days.
NO DECISION
It said there had been "no definitive decision yet" on those
coming from other parts of the world. Johnson chaired a meeting
with senior ministers on Tuesday, but it was unclear when any
announcement would be made.
The measures, among the strictest in Europe if introduced,
have alarmed the travel industry with UK-based airlines and
airports warning a further tightening of rules would be
"catastrophic".
Britain currently bans most international travel, with
flight volumes down 80% compared to 2019 and more than 45,000
jobs lost in the sector.
Airlines UK, which represents carriers including British
Airways and easyJet, said in a statement with
the country's trade body for airports that more restrictions
could impact cargo movements, including PPE supplies, and more
jobs could be lost.
"We have fully supported the government to do what is right
in the face of this pandemic, but policy should be based on
evidence and there must be a roadmap out of these restrictions
as soon as it is safe," they said.
In further worrying news for the industry, Zahawi said the
public should not be booking holidays abroad this summer.
"There's still 37,000 people in hospital with COVID at the
moment, it's far too early for us to even speculate about the
summer," he told Sky News.
(Additional reporting by Paul Sandle, Sarah Young and Elizabeth
Piper; editing by Estelle Shirbon and Ed Osmond)
