Quarantine rules imposed by the UK Government for those arriving in the UK from abroad will have led to an influx of concerns from the aviation industry and the travel and tourism sector. And now experts are saying the new rules will “kill international travel”.

The Prime Minister’s announcement yesterday has sparked concerns over how the travel industry will cope. As many Americans face the possibility of not being able to travel abroad this summer, the travel industry in the UK and across the world could see an even bigger plummet in revenue. Yesterday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson suggested that most airline passengers arriving in the UK from abroad will have to self-isolate for 14 days on arrival.

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The announcement saw Mr Johnson announce new quarantine rules that will hugely impact international travel.

The new rules mean that almost everyone who arrives in the UK from abroad must stay in quarantine for 14 days due to Coronavirus.

All people arriving at airports, ports and on the Eurostar trains will have to provide a UK address where they will be staying and immediately self-isolating for 14 days.

A 50-page document titled, ‘OUR PLAN TO REBUILD: The UK Government’s COVID-19 recovery strategy’ published by the Government today explained the new guidelines for international travel. 

It reads: “The Government will require all international arrivals to supply their contact and accommodation information.”

It continued: “They will also be strongly advised to download and use the NHS contact tracing app. The Government will require all international arrivals not on a short list of exemptions to self-isolate in their accommodation for fourteen days on arrival into the UK.

“Where international travellers are unable to demonstrate where they would self-isolate, they will be required to do so in accommodation arranged by the Government. The Government is working closely with the devolved administrations to coordinate implementation across the UK.”

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Now, airlines such as British Airlines are revealing that the new rules could potentially “kill international travel from the UK” and further “damage” the aviation industry as more airlines face the possibility of slow business.

Airlines UK, a trade body for UK registered airlines, said the new rules would “effectively kill international travel to and from the UK, and cause immeasurable damage to the aviation industry and wider UK economy”.

Nobody is going to go on holiday if they’re not able to resume normal life for 14 days, and business travel would be severely restricted.

It will also make it all but impossible for aviation to resume any time soon, thereby setting back the UK’s economic recovery still further.

In response to Mr Johnson’s announcement, CEO of Airlines UK Tim Alderslade released a statement which said that although public health is the priority, these new rules for air travel “are not the way to do this”.

He said: “Public health must of course be the priority and we respect the Sage advice.