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* Transport secretary simplifies travel rules, cut costs
* Expensive testing scrapped for fully vaccinated
* Destinations will be ranked high or low risk
(Recasts, adds details)
By Sarah Young and Guy Faulconbridge
LONDON, Sept 17 (Reuters) - Britain simplified rules on
Friday for international travel to England in a boost to the
tourism industry, including scrapping the need for fully
vaccinated passengers to take expensive COVID-19 tests on
arrival from low-risk countries.
Under the new proposals, destinations will simply be ranked
low or high risk, instead of red, amber and green. Eight
countries, including Turkey, Pakistan and the Maldives will be
removed from the high risk red band from next Wednesday which
requires passengers to quarantine in a hotel.
From Oct. 4, passengers arriving from low-risk countries
will be permitted to take a cheaper lateral flow test, rather
than the privately administered PCR lab tests now required. PCR
tests for a family now can cost hundreds of pounds.
"Today’s changes mean a simpler, more straightforward
system. One with less testing and lower costs, allowing more
people to travel, see loved ones or conduct business around the
world while providing a boost for the travel industry,"
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said in a statement.
The British government sets policy for England, while
Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are in charge of their own
rules.
Airlines and travel companies have argued for months that
far-reaching changes were needed to the system or more job
losses would follow the 100,000 already lost. They blamed
testing and complicated rules for the slowness of a recovery in
air travel over the summer.
The industry, already on its knees after 18 months of
restrictions, is facing a cliff edge as a government furlough
scheme ends later this month with winter approaching, when fewer
people travel and businesses tend to make a loss.
RECOVERY LAGS
Data shows that Britain's travel recovery is lagging. UK
flights were down 39% compared to pre-pandemic levels for the
two weeks to early Sept. 6, while France, Spain and Italy were
down between 24-28%, according to Eurocontrol.
Quarantine hotels, where people spend 11 nights in a
designated facility at a cost of more than 2,000 pounds, are
expected to remain in place for arrivals from high risk
countries.
The British Airline Pilots Association said the government
changes were good news for the industry. But workers in the
sector would be among those most hurt by the end of the
government's furlough programme, which has paid salaries of
staff sent home during the pandemic and expires at the end of
this month.
"But there is still a way to go before UK aviation can truly
take-off again and the industry remains precariously placed
after a dire summer season," BALPA Acting General Secretary
Martin Chalk said. "With furlough ending it is going to be hard
for cash strapped airlines to get back up and running as demand
returns."
($1 = 0.7247 pounds)
(Reporting by Andrew MacAskill, Costas Pitas, Guy Faulconbridge
and Sarah Young, Editing by Angus MacSwan, Philippa Fletcher,
Peter Graff)
