Easyjet boss calls for government to share way out of new quarantine measures
Easyjet’s chief executive has today called on the government to provide details of how it will relax its current border restrictions in order to give people the confidence to travel again.
Yesterday ministers unveiled details of a new hotel quarantine policy, which will see travellers from 33 red-list countries forced to pay £1,750 to spend 10 days in isolation in a hotel if they return to the UK.
In addition, all travellers returning to this country will have to take three Covid tests, as well as isolating for 10 days.
Finally, those who fail to follow the new guidelines will be hit by harsh penalties – including prison sentences of up to 10 years for people who return from red-list countries without quarantining.
Speaking to the CAPA Aviation conference this morning, Johan Lundgren said: “The most important thing now is that the government comes out and says how it is going to unwind the measures”.
He also said that the budget carrier had begun to see demand return for summer holidays at traditional resort destinations.
He added that the industry could enjoy a successful holiday period if the vaccine programme works, particularly on variants of the coronavirus.
However, Lundgren is no supporter of mandatory vaccination for travellers, as he told City PM.
“That’s not the point [of controls]. What’s important is working out who has the infection, and putting restrictions in place to manage that”, he said.
Lundgren’s comments came after transport secretary Grant Shapps this morning urged people to refrain from booking holidays just yet.
“Until you know the route out of lockdown, which we can’t know until we have more data, more information on vaccines, please don’t go ahead and book holidays for something which, at this stage, is illegal to actually go and do, whether it’s here or abroad”, he told the BBC.
Boris Johnson is expected to lay out a “roadmap” for removing current lockdown restrictions on 22 February.
But with acute fears over the possibility of importing new variants of the disease to the UK, the outlook for international travel is as yet unknown.
Speaking in parliament today, the Prime Minister defended the new policy as a sensible response to the issue.
“I think this policy is measured, it is proportional. It is getting tougher from Monday”, he said.