British Airways’ parent company has began legal action against the implementation of a 14-day quarantine on arrivals by accusing the government of “unfair” exemptions for some travellers and “disproportionate” restrictions on visitors.
International Airlines Group (IAG) has sent a legal letter to the Home Office which is understood to expose loopholes that allow business people who commute weekly from the UK to the EU to avoid self-isolation.
This contrasts with blanket quarantine measures for nearly all other travellers, irrespective of where they have come from.
IAG’s legal case is also expected to claim the quarantine restrictions are unjustified in that they are stricter than those placed on people in the UK suffering from Covid-19, who are asked to self-isolate for seven days and will not face fines of up to £1,000.
Measures to come into effect today (June 8) and will be reviewed three weeks later, when ‘travel corridors’ may be introduced allowing travel to certain countries.
Reports in Sunday newspapers, quoting IAG lawyers anonymously, also say IAG’s case will use evidence from the government’s own scientific advisors to challenge the validity of the quarantine.
Comments include those made by chief scientific officer Sir Patrick Vallance who said the measures would be effective only in restricting travel from countries with high rates of infection when cases in Britain were low. Nearly all EU countries have lower rates than Britain.
IAG’s legal challenge has the support of budget carriers Ryanair and easyJet.
A Ryanair spokesman speaking on behalf of the Irish carrier, easyJet and British Airways, said: “The pre-action protocol letter sent on Friday was signed by British Airways, easyJet and Ryanair. These measures are disproportionate and unfair on British citizens as well as international visitors arriving in the UK.
“We challenge the UK government on a number of defective measures, including (i) the fact the this quarantine is more stringent than the guidelines applied to people who actually have COVID-19, (ii) that if you live in Scotland to date the rules won’t apply, (iii) that, for example, if you are a French or German worker commuting weekly to the UK you will be exempted, and (iv) that the UK government is banning people from countries with lower R rates than the UK.
“We urge the UK Govt to remove this ineffective visitor quarantine which will have a devastating effect on UK’s tourism industry and will destroy (even more) thousands of jobs in this unprecedented crisis.”
Labour is unlikely to oppose the introduction of the blanket measures in Parliament on Monday, The Telegraph reported, adding that leader Sir Kier Starmer will call for a “more targeted approach”.
It said shadow home secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds had written to Priti Patel demanding any exit strategy should include a 24-hour turnaround on coronavirus tests, a “sector-specific support package” to help airlines and other industries affected by the rules, and details of the Government’s plans for so-called “air bridges” between the UK and other countries.
