The Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) issued on Thursday the updated ‘Green List’ of countries…reports Asian Lite News
All travellers arriving from these destinations will be exempt from mandatory quarantine measures after landing in Abu Dhabi.
Travellers will be required to present a negative PCR COVID-19 test valid for a maximum of 48 hours before departure and undergo a PCR test upon arrival at Abu Dhabi International Airport. Vaccinated passengers from the updated Green List will take another PCR test on day 6 (day of arrival counts as day 1). Unvaccinated travellers arriving from these Green List countries will also take a PCR test on days 6 and 9.
Countries, regions, and territories included on the ‘Green List’ will be regularly updated based on international developments. Inclusion on the list is subject to strict criteria of health and safety to ensure the well-being of the UAE community. The list also only applies to countries that travellers are arriving from, rather than citizenship.
The decision to move Portugal – including Madeira and the Azores – to the amber list follows increased concern in the spread of variants of coronavirus, including a mutation of the Delta variant, reports Asian Lite Newsdesk
Britons’ hopes of a summer holiday abroad is hanging in the balance as no new countries have been added to the UK’s green travel list and Portugal has moved to amber.
The first update to the government’s traffic light list for international travel has taken place on Thursday with Portugal moved to the amber list in a bid to safeguard people against virus variants and protect vaccine rollout.
Meanwhile, seven countries – including Sri Lanka and Egypt – have also been added to the travel red list. All changes to the lists will come into effect at 4am on Tuesday 8 June.
The decision to move Portugal – including Madeira and the Azores – to the amber list follows increased concern in the spread of variants of coronavirus, including a mutation of the Delta variant.
The government said situation in Portugal has required swift action to protect the gains made with the vaccine rollout. It said there has been an almost doubling in the COVID-19 test positivity rate in Portugal since the first review for traffic light allocations, far exceeding the ONS estimated national positivity rate in the UK.
More significantly, according to data published on GISAID, 68 cases of the Delta variant of concern have been identified in Portugal, including cases of the Delta variant with an additional, potentially detrimental, mutation, the government said.
“The public has always known travel will be different this year and we must continue to take a cautious approach to reopening international travel in a way that protects public health and the vaccine rollout,” said Transport Secretary Grant Shapps.
“While we are making great progress in the UK with the vaccine rollout, we continue to say that the public should not travel to destinations outside the green list,” he added.
Public Health England is investigating the Delta variant and mutation, to better understand whether it could be more transmissible and less effectively tackled by vaccines.
The full list of additional countries added to the ‘red list’ includes Afghanistan, Bahrain, Costa Rica, Egypt, Sri Lanka, Sudan, and Trinidad and Tobago.
While the number of ‘green list’ destinations remains low, the government is urging the public not to travel to amber classified destinations to play their role in protecting public health. This is due to the prevalence of variants of concern and general rates of coronavirus being greater in amber destinations, meaning the risk to public health is also greater.
People returning to the UK require proof of a negative test, taken within 3 days before the service on which they will arrive in England departs. Those returning from amber countries must also book and pay for day 2 and day 8 COVID-19 travel tests for when they return to the UK; only the day 2 test is required for those returning from green countries.
Airport
UK on Tuesday reported zero daily coronavirus-related deaths for the first time since March last year.
Earlier, a scientist advising the government said the progress of Britain’s vaccination program does not mean that the fight against coronavirus is over.
Professor Adam Finn from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, which advises the government on vaccine priority, said the country remains vulnerable as large numbers of people remain unvaccinated.
“The idea that somehow the job is done is wrong — we’ve still got a lot of people out there who have neither had this virus infection nor yet been immunized and that’s why we’re in a vulnerable position right now,” he told the BBC.
Scotland First Minister Nicola Sturgeon
Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced Tuesday that the easing of restrictions will be delayed in much of Scotland, which will remain in Level Two restrictions amid concerns over the spread of coronavirus variant first detected in India.
Experts have warned that coronavirus may continue to evolve for years to come, and eventually it is likely current vaccines will fail to protect against transmission, infection, or even against disease caused by newer variants.
Portugal, Israel, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand are among 12 countries and regions on the “green list” of travel destinations from May 17 for people in UK , reports Asian Lite News
The British government on Friday announced a “green list” of countries from which travellers are not required to quarantine upon return to England.
Portugal, Israel, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand are among 12 countries and regions on the “green list” of travel destinations from May 17 for people in England, British Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said.
Speaking at a press conference at Downing Street, Shapps said that Covid tests will still be required before and after travel to these destinations.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps during a Covid-19 press conference inside No10 Downing Street (Picture by Andrew Parsons / No 10 Downing Street)
Shapps described the step as “tentative” as concerns remain “about resurgence of Covid”, the Xinhua news agency reported.
Under the new traffic light system, Turkey, the Maldives and Nepal have been added to the “red list”, which means travellers from those countries will have to quarantine in a hotel for 10 days on their return.
Shapps said that the government’s latest decision was “necessarily cautious”. “We must make sure the countries we reconnect with are safe,” he added.
Countries on the green, amber and red lists would be reviewed every three weeks from May 17, according to Shapps.
The British government is only responsible for coronavirus restrictions in England. The devolved governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are responsible for their own policies in relation to public health matters. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have not said when they might ease their strict travel restrictions.
Another 2,490 people in Britain have tested positive for Covid-19, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 4,431,043, according to official figures released on Friday.
A pedestrian walks by a pub, The Hope, shuttered in London due to coronavirus regulations. Thousands of British pubs have not survived the pandemic, according to an industry association, and the ones that have will need financial support “for years if they are to recover.” Photo: Yui Mok/PA
The country also reported another 15 coronavirus-related deaths. The total number of coronavirus-related deaths in Britain now stands at 127,598. These figures only include the deaths of people who died within 28 days of their first positive test.
More than 35 million people have been given the first jab of the coronavirus vaccine, according to the latest official figures.
Earlier Friday, Public Health England declared a coronavirus strain first detected in India, known as B1617.2, as “variant of concern”.
Experts have warned that despite progress in vaccine rollout, Britain is “still not out of the woods” amid concerns over new variants, particularly those first emerged in South Africa, Brazil and India, and the third wave of pandemic on the European continent.
To bring life back to normal, countries such as Britain, China, Russia, the US as well as the European Union have been racing against time to roll out coronavirus vaccines.
