UK hotel quarantine to start on 15 February

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UK residents returning from coronavirus hotspots abroad will have to quarantine in hotels from 15 February, the government has confirmed.

Hotel owners will be asked to provide rooms for more than 1,000 new people every day, documents suggest. Passengers will have to stay in their rooms for 10 nights, with security guards accompanying if they go outside.

Quarantine hotels are expected to be set up near airports including Heathrow, Gatwick, London City, Birmingham, Bristol, Manchester, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen.

The rules will apply to UK nationals and residents returning to the country from 33 “red list” Covid-19 hotspots – including several South American and African countries where new Covid variants have been detected in large numbers of people – and passengers will be expected to pay for the cost of the accommodation.

Most foreign nationals from high-risk countries already face UK travel bans.

Ministers are also likely to increase the fines for people who break the rules. Guests will have three meals a day in their rooms, with tea, coffee, fruit and water being available. Security will “accompany any of the arrived individuals to access outside space should they need to smoke or get fresh air”, one document says.

The government is expected to set out further details next week on how passengers will be able to book into the designated hotels.

All travellers entering the UK will be required to take two coronavirus tests while quarantining in an attempt to prevent variants entering the country.

Arrivals will be required to get a test on days two and eight of their 10-day quarantine period, whether they are isolating at home or in a hotel.

It is in addition to the current rules which say travellers arriving in the UK, whether by boat, train or plane, must show proof of a negative Covid-19 test to be allowed entry.

This test must be taken in the 72 hours before travelling, and anyone arriving without one faces a fine of up to £500, with Border Force officials carrying out spot checks.

Travellers must provide contact details and their UK address. They can then travel – by public transport if necessary – to the place where they plan to self-isolate.

Source: BBC