Transport secretary Grant Shapp has confirmed new rules allowing fully vaccinated travellers to avoid quarantine when returning from amber destinations will be introduced in stages.
Shapps told MPs today that recognition of vaccinated travellers would involve “a complicated policy that requires time to work through”.
He echoed the Department for Transport announcement issued last Thursday (June 24) by saying three issues need to be worked out – how children will be considered; what happens to people who can’t be vaccinated; and how to recognise people’s vaccine status at ports and airports.
Shapps noted it would be easier to do this for UK residents through the NHS app than for travellers from overseas and told MPs: “We’ll announce to the House when we are ready to make these decisions to bring this system into place, phased most likely for UK residents first.”
He apologised for not outlining the changes announced on June 24 in the Commons after speaker of the House Lindsay Hoyle urged the government to make important announcements to MPs before announcing them to the media.
Malta, Madeira, the Balearics and several Caribbean islands join the green list from 4am on Wednesday (June 30) following the June 24 announcement.
Shapps insisted: “These decisions are not easy and they will not be enhanced by simplistic calls to stick countries on a red list or a green list without providing the level of detail that the amber list helps to provided.”
Labour shadow transport minister Jim McMahon called for the government to publish the criteria for placing destinations on the red, amber or green list.
He also asked why the government does not have “concrete plans” for international vaccine ‘passports’.
McMahon said the prime minister missed a “golden opportunity” at the recent G7 summit to open up travel with the US.
Shapps said the methodology for the traffic light list, and the data behind it, are already published on the government website.
He said a US-UK working group met last Thursday and progress is being made. However, a “whole series of complexities” remain to be resolved, including the fact that the US does not currently recognise the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine.
Asked about financial support for the travel industry, Shapps repeated that £7 billion has been provided to the sector.
Huw Merriman, chair of the transport select committee of MPs, urged the government to publish a “flight path” for easing travel restrictions.
Shapps said he would return to the Commons next month with further details. He insisted he wants to see the opening up of international travel but stressed the need to ensure “variants of concern are properly monitored”.