Transport Secretary Grant Shapps, who held a press conference from Downing Street on Friday afternoon, said the resuming of international travel was “necessarily cautious” and that the Government must “make absolutely sure” the countries the UK reconnects with are safe. Foreign travel resuming will come as a huge relief to many who haven’t been able to see friends and family abroad in months. The travel industry will also undoubtedly be breathing a huge sigh of relief right now at the prospect of reopening their economic sector in just 10 days.
Mr Shapps said: “We in this country have managed to construct a fortress against Covid, but the disease is still prevalent in other parts of the world, most notably at the moment in India.
“In fact, more new cases of Covid have been diagnosed around the world in the last seven days than at any time since the pandemic began.”
The Transport Secretary added: “That’s why today’s announcements moving the stay in the UK restrictions from May 17, is necessarily cautious.
“We must make absolutely sure that the countries we reconnect with are safe, but their infection rates are low and their vaccination rates are high.”
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Micronesia
Moldova
Monaco
Mongolia
Montenegro
Montserrat
Morocco
Myanmar (Burma)
Nauru
Netherlands
New Caledonia
New Zealand
Nicaragua
Niger
Nigeria
North Korea
North Macedonia
Norway
Palestine
Palau
Papua New Guinea
Pitcairn
Poland
Reunion
Romania
Russia
Samoa
San Marino
Sao Tome and Principe
Saudi Arabia
Senegal
Serbia
Sierra Leone
Slovakia
Slovenia
Solomon Islands
South Korea
South Sudan
Spain
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St Kitts and Nevis
St Lucia
St Martin and St Barthelemy
St Vincent and the Grenadines
Sudan
Sweden
Switzerland
Syria
Taiwan
Tajikistan
Thailand
Timor-Leste
Togo
Tonga
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Tunisia
Turkmenistan
Turks and Caicos Islands
Tuvalu
Uganda
Ukraine
USA
Uzbekistan
Vanuatu
Vietnam
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