UK defends refusal to isolate Chinese travelers if they arrive with Covid

Travelers to England from China will be offered two Covid tests, but the second will be voluntary and will not require people to self-isolate 'it comes back positive

Covid rules for people traveling to England from China change from Thursday (stock photo) (

Image: Getty Images)

The UK government has defended the refusal to isolate Chinese travelers if they arrive in England with Covid.

People traveling from mainland China to England will be asked to take a pre-departure test from Thursday - and will not be allowed to board a plane if they test positive.

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Rishi Sunak made the major U-turn amid a surge of cases in China - after years of relaxed "zero-Covid" measures by President Xi.

Some of these travelers will then be offered a second Covid test upon arrival in England.

But this second test will only be voluntary for "surveillance," and if it comes back positive, people won't have to quarantine or self-isolate.

The Liberal Democrats have accused the government of 'muddled thinking', telling The Independent: "Ministers must learn from past failures."

But Downing Street today insisted the approach is consistent - because Britain is 'living with Covid', and Britons in the UK who test positive don't have to self-isolate.

Evidence suggests the Chinese variants of Covid match those already circulating in the UK and elsewhere in Europe, No10 added.

Hong Kong passengers at Manchester Airport (file photo). Hong Kong is currently exempt (

Picture:

Andy Stenning/Daily Mirror)

Instead, people with respiratory infections are advised to stay home, and if they must go out, it is suggested that they wear a mask.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's official spokesperson said: "We have introduced this precautionary and temporary measure to detect potential new Covid variants from China.

“So this means people traveling from mainland China, on flights to England from January 5, will need to take a Covid test before departure.

"Passengers will not be permitted to board a flight without providing proof of a negative test result.

“It is important to distinguish this from the monitoring program the UKHSA is working on, which will see people on arrival being asked to p...