A law firm representing travellers affected by the UK’s quarantine hotel policy says it has issued court proceedings against the Government, and slammed the current system as an “unlawful deprivation of liberty”.

London-based PGMBM has previously sought a judicial review of the blanket approach to regulations, which require all travellers coming from a red list country to spend 11 nights in a quarantine hotel at a cost of £2,285 – even if they are fully vaccinated and test negative for Covid.

Tom Goodhead, managing partner at PGMBM, said: “It’s disappointing that the government hasn’t yet realised that this policy is a fundamental breach of people’s human rights.

“Law abiding citizens who have been double vaccinated should be free from quarantine. The idea that they need to pay for the privilege of their own imprisonment is outrageous.”

He added: “The people that are contacting us for help every day are not reckless globetrotters. They are typically people who have been forced to travel to care for relatives or attend funerals of their parents or siblings.”

Scroll down for more of today’s travel news.

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11:26AM

‘For pure adventure, there’s no better option right now than green-listed Iceland’

"Like everyone, my group had endured a challenging, sorrowful year, but we felt more invigorated and renewed with every day"

“Like everyone, my group had endured a challenging, sorrowful year, but we felt more invigorated and renewed with every day”

Credit:
Moment RF / Getty

There are few more exciting – or more accessible – countries in the world for British travellers than Iceland, writes John O’Ceallaigh:

We kayaked in the clear, still waters between snow-clad fjords to reach Dynjandi, a cascade of seven frothing waterfalls that locals liken to the gossamer spread of a delicate bridal veil.

In Hornstrandir Nature Reserve, a 220-square-mile expanse that is home to Arctic foxes, we dropped freshly baked croissants off to a park ranger who had been living off pasta while camping solo during a week-long patrol, before treading a careful path through walkways inundated with wild bushels of Arctic Angelica as we explored the abandoned village of Hesteyri.

Even back on the more well-trodden tourist path, adventure and otherworldly landscapes are found so easily and so frequently in Iceland that it’s no wonder the country is enjoying such a surge in popularity.

Read on, here.

11:06AM

Vaccination programme reaches Peru’s Lake Titicaca

Health workers visited the floating islands of Peru’s Titicaca lake yesterday, to begin vaccinating the local population. More than 1,700 indigenous Uros people occupy the lake’s 140 islands, some of which are popular tourist destinations.

“We hope to be immunised in a mass vaccination because we offer lodging and deal every day with national and foreign tourists, and we run risks of being infected,” said Nelson Coila, Uros Community president

The man-made islands are a popular tourism destination

The man-made islands are a popular tourism destination

Credit:
AFP

The vaccination team was accompanied by the former Mayor of Uros' island, Rita Subana [pictured right]

The vaccination team was accompanied by the former Mayor of Uros’ island, Rita Subana [pictured right]

Credit:
AFP

10:48AM

‘The UK’s travel rules have snatched defeat from the jaws of victory’

Sajid Javid said that he wants to remove the PCR testing requirement ‘as soon as I possibly can’, but the scheme has been a shambles from day one, writes Danny Callaghan, CEO of the Latin American Travel Association:

With testing completely unregulated it seems almost as though anyone could buy a kids’ chemistry set from Argos and set themselves up as a PCR testing company, listed on the Government website, charging exorbitant fees and not actually delivering any meaningful tests.

The majority of travel remains hamstrung by the chaotic restrictions of the traffic light system and FCDO advice. How is it that we have ended up lagging so far behind the EU in terms of opening up travel, when our vaccine rollout was envied by them just a few months ago? The UK Government has excelled at snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.

We need to drop the traffic light scheme and FCDO advisories and move to a situation where there is a presumption to allow travel unless there is a very clear, scientifically justifiable, and transparently communicated reason not to. The days of shady decisions, based on shaky data, taken for political reasons must stop here.

10:27AM

‘Where is my £600 for cancelled Roman holiday?’

Are you still awaiting a refund for a trip cancelled due to the pandemic? One reader contacted us with a complaint against booking.com, which had promised a £600 refund – yet hadn’t paid up. Happily, our consumer champion Sally Hamilton was able to help.

‘My inbox is full of complaints about travel not issuing refunds’

10:03AM

Heathrow loses top spot in Europe

Queues pictured at Heathrow's border control earlier this month

Queues pictured at Heathrow’s border control earlier this month

Credit:
Reuters

The impact of the UK’s travel restrictions has caused Heathrow to slip to tenth place in the rankings of Europe’s busiest hubs, the airport has admitted.

EU ‘rival’ airports including Schiphol, Paris and Frankfurt are all recovering at a much quicker pace, HAL said in a statement this morning.

“The current traffic light system is an outlier and is delaying the Government’s Global Britain ambitions, handing rivals a competitive advantage while the UK loses market share,” it added. 

“Heathrow’s proposals, supported by major airlines and the wider travel and tourism industry, are for the Government to remove the amber list and create a safe but simple two-tier system – a green list and red list, retaining hotel quarantine.

“Ministers must […] move from a country-based approach to a risk-based one, based on individuals’ vaccination status. Fully vaccinated travellers should not be required to take a test, while those who are not vaccinated should continue to take a pre-departure and arrival test using lateral flow, following up with a PCR test if positive.”

Heathrow passenger numbers remain 71% down in August versus the same month pre-pandemic.

9:47AM

Holiday prices will be ‘dramatically higher’, says Ryanair boss

Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary has warned that prices will increase as passengers rush to holiday in Europe next summer.

O’Leary said the huge demand for 2022 holidays would coincide with fewer flights, meaning a price rise for flights and also for hotels.

In an interview with The Sunday Times, he said: “I think there will be a dramatic recovery in holiday tourism within Europe next year. And the reason why I think prices will be dramatically higher is that there’s less capacity.

“Take out Thomas Cook (six million seats), Flybe (eight million seats), Norwegian (nearly 24 million seats) – Alitalia’s reducing its fleet by 40%. There is going to be about 20% less short-haul capacity in Europe in 2022 with a dramatic recovery in demand.”

Ryanair prices will be cut this winter, to “grab market share everywhere”, O’Leary said.

9:37AM

Covid headlines around the world 

People wait in a queue to receive the Sinovac vaccine during a mass vaccination at a zoo in Surabaya, Indonesia, this morning

People wait to receive the Sinovac vaccine during a mass vaccination at a zoo in Surabaya, Indonesia, this morning

Credit:
AFP

  • The southeastern province of Fujian, China, has locked down after reporting just 22 new Covid cases. Schools have been closed and anyone leaving the area must have proof of a negative test in the previous 48 hours. Bus and train services are suspended; and cinemas, bars and other facilities are closed.
  • Chancellor Angela Merkel implored Germany to make use of a week-long vaccination campaign in which people can get a free jab at mosques, shops and football pitches. Merkel said while it was good that 62% are fully vaccinated, case numbers were rising and most people who are hospitalised are not vaccinated. 

  • US health officials believe that the Pfizer vaccine could be authorised for children aged 5-11 years old by the end of October, two sources familiar with the situation have said.

9:24AM

Borneo orangutans tested for virus

A vet collects a swab sample from an orangutan at the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre, in Borneo

A vet collects a swab sample from an orangutan at the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre, in Borneo

Credit:
Getty

Dozens of critically endangered orangutans in Malaysia have been tested for the coronavirus, with vets in protective suits undertaking the tricky task of giving the apes nasal swabs.

The antigen tests on 30 of the animals in Borneo were conducted last Tuesday, and all came back negative, wildlife officials said.

They were the first virus tests on orangutans in the Southeast Asian country, and were ordered after staff at a rehabilitation centre and wildlife park became infected.

“Testing for Covid-19 has been a vital tool in helping us get through this pandemic, and it is similarly important for this orangutan population,” said Sen Nathan, assistant director of the Sabah Wildlife Department. “The disease could prove vastly detrimental to their health and set back their rehabilitation.”

Vets will continue to closely monitor the apes and tests will be conducted regularly, officials said.

9:04AM

Fines of up to £10,000 for Covid travel test ‘cowboys’ 

The CMA said on Friday that the Government needs a "more interventionist" approach to address concerns regarding the travel testing market

The CMA said on Friday that the Government needs a “more interventionist” approach to address concerns regarding the travel testing market

Credit:
Bloomberg

Companies “messing around with costs” of PCR tests for holidaymakers will face fines of up to £10,000, Health Secretary Sajid Javid has said, following a review by the UK competition regulator:

It is completely unacceptable for any private testing company to take advantage of holidaymakers and we are taking action to clamp down on cowboy behaviour.

Through our regular reviews and spot-checks, we have identified even more providers that were messing around with costs and have now removed 91 providers from gov.uk and corrected inaccurate prices of 135 private providers who will be removed from the list if they advertise misleading prices again.

From September 21, in order to ensure travel test providers are performing to a high legalised standard, there will be tough new penalties for companies that fail to follow the law, including fixed fines of up to £10,000.

8:54AM

Developing countries ask for vaccines to attend UK climate conference

Some of the world’s poorest countries have asked for help to meet vaccination and quarantine requirements to ensure they can take part in next month’s global climate conference in Glasgow.

Some 20 low-income countries such as Ethiopia, Haiti and Bangladesh are on the UK’s red list, which means their delegates will have to quarantine in a hotel for up to 10 days before attending the COP 26 talks, which run from October 31 to November 12.

Britain has said it will pay the quarantine costs of delegates from red list countries, and has cut the time to five days from 10 for those who are vaccinated.

The talks aim to spur bigger commitments to start reducing manmade greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, and stave off the worst effects of climate change.

“Delegates from the LDC Group remain concerned about the logistics of getting to Glasgow,” Sonam Phuntsho Wangdi of Bhutan, chair of the group of the 46 Least Developed Countries (LDC), said in a statement.

“Our countries and our people are among the worst affected by climate change – we must not be excluded from talks deciding how the world will deal with this crisis, determining the fate of our lives and livelihoods.”

It has also said it is distributing Covid vaccines to delegates struggling to get them.

8:31AM

Firefighter dies battling southern Spain wildfire

A firefighter has been killed battling a wind-fuelled wildfire in southern Spain which forced the evacuation of hundreds of locals and tourists, local officials said.

The 44-year-old was one of around 400 firefighters tackling the flames which had broken out late Wednesday in the Sierra Bermeja mountains in the southern province of Malaga, the Andalusia regional government said in a statement.

Firefighters were backed by 29 water-dropping aircraft in their battle against the blaze during the day.

The regional government said around 1,000 people were evacuated from their homes – mainly from the municipality of Estepona, an area popular with British pensioners and holidaymakers.

Several told Spanish public television they were given only minutes to leave by police.

Local officials suspect the blaze may have been deliberately started.”It is striking that at the same moment in the evening, when there were strong winds in different spots, there were different outbreaks of fire,” Estepona mayor Jose Garcia Urbano told reporters.

8:09AM

New Zealand PM extends lockdown in Auckland to Sept 21

The trans-Tasman travel bubble between New Zealand and Australia remains suspended

The trans-Tasman travel bubble between New Zealand and Australia remains suspended

Credit:
Getty

New Zealand’s largest city Auckland will remain in lockdown to beat the spread of the delta variant of the coronavirus, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Monday.

Health authorities recorded 33 new cases of the delta variant on Monday, all in Auckland, which was higher than 23 and 20 cases reported over the weekend.

Auckland will remain in the strict Alert level 4 lockdown until midnight on Sept. 21, after which it will move to alert level 3, Ms Ardern said in a news conference.

8:00AM

PCR tests for double-vaccinated travellers ‘to be dropped’

Ministers are preparing to lift the requirement for double-jabbed travellers to take PCR tests when they return to the UK, according to reports.

The tests will be scrapped for holidaymakers returning from green and amber list countries in what will prove to be a boost for the beleaguered travel industry.

Instead of expensive PCR tests on the second day after arrival, they will be asked to take a lateral flow test, which are currently offered for free by the NHS, according to the Mail on Sunday.

It could help cut the cost of holidays by hundreds of pounds for families, a financial barrier that has deterred millions from overseas trips this year.

Jack Hardy has the story.

7:40AM

The weekend’s headlines

Before we begin, a quick recap of this weekend’s travel news:

  • ‘No more national lockdowns’ as Boris Johnson rips up Covid rules
  • Airlines giving out ‘incorrect Covid testing information’ to passengers
  • Vietnam to welcome fully vaccinated visitors in pilot scheme
  • Australia-UK flights ‘by November’, says industry chief

Now, on with today’s top stories.

Source: telegraph UK

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