“Public health remains the UK’s top priority and we are committed to tackling this virus while enabling a sustainable and responsible return to international travel. When asked about plans for a UK-NY travel corridor, a Department for Transport spokesperson said: “Conversations between governments in other countries on a whole range of issues take place regularly.

This is compared to New York, which has had relatively low numbers of coronavirus since mid-June. New York has also established roadside checkpoints to make sure people returning from high-risk parts of the US are complying with local quarantine requirements.Īnother said: “Senior ministers have been debating this for a while, but so far the argument has been that since we are unable to track people’s movements when they get to the US, a blanket quarantine requirement should remain in place.”Ĭovid-19 cases have surged in recent weeks in the US, but mostly in states that removed lockdown restrictions early, especially in the south and west of the country.įlorida became the second US state to pass the 500,000 coronavirus cases milestone and announced more than 5,000 new cases per day. Since being at the epicentre of the COVID-19 outbreak and getting on top of the numbers, New York (and the Tri States of New Jersey & Connecticut) have put in place a quarantine requirements for anyone, including US citizens travelling into the state. It wouldn’t work in America - what would you do, put a physical border around some states?” “It’s certainly not being considered for the other side of the Atlantic. “There’s a problem that if you do a regional breakdown for one country, others could demand the same treatment and you’d open the floodgates,” said one government official. The FT reports that one British official said there had been “lots of discussions” about taking a regional approach, but it had been seen as impractical.Įxceptions being considered were some island groups, like the Portuguese island of Madeira or the Spanish Canary Islands or Balearics might be exempt, but ministers are cautious about even following that route. As an example, Spain has been lobbying the UK government not to have quarantined the whole country, as the islands did not show any increase in numbers.Īs the UK updates its quarantine list every 14 days, ministers have not wanted to switch to a region-by-region basis. This will be a difficult change in tactic as the UK has so far resisted any calls to quarantine travel from certain parts of countries. Furthermore, it is thought that if the quarantine measures are changed for the US to allow travel from regions like New York, the UK will have to do the same for Europe. It has focussed on trying to keep the virus under control. The Prime Minister’s office has so far resisted the changes and the arguments. It is argued that the relaxation of travel between the two countries would help stimulate transatlantic commerce and help smooth the path of a potential trade deal currently being negotiated between the two countries. Trade officials and diplomats are asking for the government to drop its quarantine requirements for travellers from the US and citing that coronavirus is under control in some states, especially around New York.

Free airbridge not working