Published on Tuesday, June 16, 2020

Britons could be banned from Spanish beaches as it considers new quarantine

Spain is considering imposing a tit for tat quarantine on UK holidaymakers once it lifts travel restrictions for EU countries on Sunday.

The Spanish Government announced earlier this week that British tourists would be allowed back from June 21.

But its Foreign Minister Arancha Gonzalez Laya told the BBC this morning that they might be subject to a mandatory quarantine.

Speaking on the HARDtalk programme, she said: "We will be checking what the UK will be doing and we will be in a dialogue with the UK to see whether or not we should be introducing reciprocity as they have different measures than the rest of the European Union."

Laya described the situation as 'fluid', adding that officials would like to 'properly engage in a dialogue with the UK authorities to make sure that we both take the message that best corresponds to the health situation, which today is a little bit better in Spain than it is in the UK'.

The UK imposed a mandatory two-week quarantine on almost everyone entering the UK on June 8. The Government has indicated the quarantine will remain in place at least until June 29 when the measure will be reviewed, but Laya said: "Hopefully by the time we open our borders, the UK would have moved forward also."

The Foreign & Commonwealth Office is continuing to advise against all non-essential overseas travel and says restrictions are still in place for entry to Spain.

Meanwhile Iceland has reopened to tourists, including the UK, having replaced its mandatory quarantine with Covid-19 tests.