Irish PM tells Brits it’s too early to book trips
Ireland has said it is still not ready to welcome UK visitors without asking them to quarantine for 14 days on arrival, as coronavirus levels in Britain are too high.
Speaking on the BBC’s Andrew Marr show, Irish prime minister Micheal Martin said he was being ‘very cautious on international travel generally’.
Ireland is expected to announce its measures in relation to international travel on 20 July, but Martin said he is concerned about the levels of coronavirus in Britain and it is unlikely the 14-day quarantine rule will be relaxed for Brits.
The Taoiseach said the Irish government is using a similar methodology to the one used by other European Union countries to assess risk of inbound and outbound travel.
"Countries that are at Ireland’s level or below – that’s the metric that will determine our advisory to Irish citizens in terms of their travel arrangements abroad.
"In terms of people coming into Ireland, the advice on quarantine still remains and it’s under constant review."
When asked what Britain needs to do to ‘get on the green list’, Martin replied: "Suppression of the virus is key."
"We have watched reports where in certain parts of the UK there are still difficulties where certain areas have had to go into lockdown."
In response to Marr’s question: "To be absolutely clear: It is too early for British people to come to holiday in Ireland without being quarantined?" Martin answered: "It is."
Last month, a leaked Irish government memo said the UK would be excluded from the safe traveller list because of its ‘significantly poorer’ response to the pandemic.
By Lisa James, Deputy Editor (UK)
Lisa
Lisa joined Travel Weekly nearly 25 years ago as technology reporter and then sailed around the world for a couple of years as cruise correspondent, before becoming deputy editor. Now freelance, Lisa writes for various print and web publications, edits Corporate Traveller’s client magazine, Gateway, and works on the acclaimed Remembering Wildlife series of photography books, which raise awareness of nature’s most at-risk species and helps to fund their protection.
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