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London (CNN) – Canada has become the latest country to stop flights from the UK following the discovery of a new variant of covid-19, which officials say spreads faster than others.
The new variant of the coronavirus, which prompted the UK government to impose a Level 4 lockdown on London and south-east England, and tighten restrictions for all of England during the holiday period, is “out of control,” it said on Sunday. Health Secretary Matt Hancock. He said this on the same day that the UK broke its daily record for coronavirus cases, recording 35,928 new infections.
The ensuing wave of travel bans has isolated UK travelers from much of Europe and other parts of the world. It also prompted the decision to hold an emergency government meeting on Monday, chaired by Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson, a spokesman for the prime minister’s office told CNN. The meeting will focus on international movement restrictions and “in particular, the constant flow of cargo into and out of the UK,” they said. “More meetings will be held tonight and tomorrow morning to ensure strong plans are in place.”
Canada announced that it will ban most passenger travel from the United Kingdom from midnight Sunday for at least 72 hours. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau confirmed the news in a tweet Sunday night, saying it was to “protect” Canadians across the country.
South American countries suspend flights to and from the UK
In South America, Argentina, Chile and Colombia have suspended direct flights to and from the UK. Ecuador is also considering strengthening measures to control the spread of the virus.
According to a joint statement released Sunday by Argentina’s Interior and Health Ministries, the country will only allow one more flight from Britain to land at Buenos Aires international airport on Monday morning. All subsequent flights have been canceled.
The Chilean government announced on Twitter that all flights to and from the UK will be suspended from Tuesday and that travelers who have been to the UK in the past 14 days would have to self-quarantine.
Colombian President Iván Duque similarly announced that all flights between the South American country and the United Kingdom will be suspended as of Monday. Travelers who have been to the UK in the last 14 days will also need to self-quarantine when entering Colombia.
Restrictions in Europe due to new virus variant
On Sunday, France announced it would suspend travel to and from the UK for 48 hours starting at midnight local time due to the “new health risk,” Prime Minister Jean Castex said. Subsequently, both the Port of Dover and the Eurotunnel announced closures.
The Republic of Ireland bans flights from Great Britain on Mondays and Tuesdays. “In the interests of public health, people in Britain, regardless of nationality, should not travel to Ireland, either by air or by sea,” the Irish government announced in a statement. Italy will also suspend flights to and from the UK, in addition to banning entry to anyone who has been to Britain in the past two weeks, Health Minister Roberto Speranza said on Facebook on Sunday.
Portugal will allow only Portuguese citizens to arrive on flights from the UK and they will need to have a negative covid-19 test, according to the country’s interior minister.
Meanwhile, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said the country will block UK travelers for 24 hours on Monday as a “precautionary measure”, although the ban could be extended if necessary. “As a precautionary measure, we have decided to stop flights from the UK from midnight for a period of 24 hours, and what is equally important for our country, to do the same with the Eurostar (train), because that is in actually the main way people from the UK enter our country. ‘ he said, speaking to CNN affiliate VRT’s “De Zevende Dag” Sunday news program.
In other regions
The Netherlands and Latvia announced longer bans on flights from the UK, until the new year. The Dutch government, which also banned ferry passengers arriving from the UK, said the same variant of the virus had been detected in the Netherlands. Estonia also announced the suspension of air traffic with the UK until the end of the year.
And the Czech Republic imposed a mandatory 10-day quarantine on anyone arriving from the UK starting Sunday.
Going further, Saudi Arabia suspended all international flights for travelers, as well as entry through land and sea ports, for a week. Turkey has banned flights from the UK, South Africa, the Netherlands and Denmark, according to the country’s state agency Anadolu. And Israel has banned incoming flights from Britain, Denmark and South Africa, and will ban foreign nationals from those countries from entering the country.
Strict restrictions due to coronavirus
Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced on Saturday that London and much of southern and eastern England, where cases are on the rise, would enter Level 4 restrictions, similar to the lockdown seen in spring, just a few days. after reiterating his promise to relax the rules over the Christmas period.
Johnson noted that in Level 4 areas under the strictest restrictions, there will be no chance of domestic bubble mixing over Christmas. In areas with lower alert levels in England, Scotland and Wales, mixing will now be allowed only on Christmas Day.
In a hastily convened news conference Saturday, Johnson said the virus variant appears to spread more easily and may be up to 70% more transmissible than the older, more dominant type.
Medical director Chris Whitty said on Saturday that the new variant is responsible for 60% of infections in London, which have almost doubled in the last week.
As with other new variants of covid-19, this one carries a genetic fingerprint that makes it easy to track, and it turns out that it is now common. That does not mean that the mutation made it spread more easily, nor does it necessarily mean that this variation is more dangerous.
Possible explanations
Multiple experts in virus genetics and epidemiology point out that this could simply be a “lucky” variation that was amplified due to a super-propagation event; it could be the mutation that somehow makes it spread more easily without causing more serious disease; or it could be by chance.
Still, the government’s scientific advisory group for covid-19 also warned that the new variation is a “real cause for concern” and called for urgent action. On Twitter Jeremy Farrar said: “Research is being done to understand more, but acting urgently now is critical. There is nowhere in the UK and the world that you shouldn’t worry about. As in many countries, the situation is fragile.
The new variant of covid-19 originates from southeast England and has been identified in Denmark, the Netherlands and Australia, World Health Organization technical director on covid-19 Maria Van Kerkhove said on Sunday.
“We understand that this variant has also been identified in Denmark, in the Netherlands and there was a case in Australia and it did not spread further,” he said in an interview with the BBC.
Van Kerkhove said the new variant had been circulating in south-east England ‘since September’, adding: ‘We understand that the virus does not cause more serious illness from preliminary information than [el Reino Unido] shared with us, although again these studies are ongoing to observe hospitalized patients with this variant.
Londoners flee the capital
Passengers wait on the concourse at London’s Paddington station after the announcement that the capital would soon move to Level 4 of covid-19.
When asked about the time frame of the Level 4 restrictions, which effectively put parts of the UK back into lockdown seen in the spring, Hancock said on Sunday: ‘Given how fast this new variant spreads, it’s going to It will be very difficult to keep it under control until we have the vaccine.
Hancock added that what really mattered “is that people don’t just follow [las nuevas medidas de Nivel 4]Instead, everyone in a Level 4 area acts like they have the virus to stop spreading it to other people. (…) Simply knowing that with this new variant, it can be contracted more easily if there is a smaller amount of the virus present ».
“All the different measures that we have in place, we need more to control the spread of the new variant than to control the spread of the old variant,” he added, in response to whether current measures to protect people, such as the use of masks and the 2 meter rule were enough to protect people from the new variation.
Still, Londoners crowded onto trains and motorways on Saturday night as they scrambled out of the capital ahead of new restrictions announced by Johnson.
As of 7pm Saturday night there were no vacant seats on trains leaving London from various stations in the capital, PA Media reported. Passengers complained about not being able to exercise social distance inside the train cars.
Criticism of Boris Johnson
The scenes were condemned by politicians and public health experts. London Mayor Sadiq Khan called the introduction of the restrictions “devastating”, in an interview with the BBC, adding that the scenes at London train stations “were a direct consequence of the chaotic way in which they took place. made the announcement and the late stage in which it was made.
“I understand why people want to see their moms, dads, older relatives again, but I think it’s wrong,” he said.
Keir Starmer, leader of the opposition Labor Party, accused Johnson of “gross negligence” by failing to act earlier. Starmer said the Labor Party supported the latest restrictions on the coronavirus but criticized the prime minister for waiting until the “last hour” to make a decision.
“It was blatantly obvious last week that the prime minister’s plan for a Christmas free for all was too great a risk,” Starmer told an online news conference. “And yet, instead of listening to the concerns and taking them seriously, the prime minister did what he always does: dismissed the challenge, ruffled his hair and made a flippant comment.
“We have known about the increase in infections and about the national health service reaching capacity in many parts of the country for weeks. The alarms have been sounding for weeks, but the prime minister decided to ignore them, “he said.
“It is an act of gross negligence by a prime minister who, once again, has been caught behind the curve,” he said.
Arnaud Siad, James Frater, Ivana Kottasova, and Nicola Ruotolo contributed to the report.
