Ibiza, Mallorca and Menorca 'to return to amber list' - reports
14 July 2021, 07:04 | Updated: 14 July 2021, 07:14
The Balearic Islands are at risk of being moved back onto the amber list just a fortnight after being given the green light for quarantine-free travel, reports suggest.
Popular Spanish holiday destinations Ibiza, Mallorca and Menorca could be removed from the green watchlist on Wednesday due to a surge in coronavirus infections.
The Sun, which first reported the prospective change, quoted a source saying: "It's all still up for discussion, but the figures aren't great which is why it was on the watch list in the first place."
However, the Department for Transport (DfT) said there was "nothing to say at the moment" on changes to the travel status of the Balearic Islands.
Locations on the green watchlist are places which the government considers safe for travel but could be downgraded to amber if cases rise.
Read more: Bookings to amber list locations surge by 400% after quarantine update
Explained: Amber list: What are new rules for holidays and which countries are on it?
Malta, Madeira and Balearics among additions to travel green list
Anyone travelling to amber-listed countries, including mainland Spain, must self-isolate for 10 days when returning to England. However, from 19 July the quarantine requirement will be dropped for those who have had both Covid jabs or people under the age of 18.
Along with the downgrades, some countries could be added to the government's green list, according to an analyst.
Germany, Italy and Poland are among the nations most likely to go green, Robert Boyle, former director of strategy at British Airways' parent company IAG, has predicted.
Austria, Bulgaria, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia and Switzerland are also "strong candidates" for being added to the quarantine-free list, he wrote on his website.
Read more: Isolation dropped for double-jabbed Brits returning from amber areas
Read more: Green list ‘not enough’ to save industry, travel bosses say
Caller finds new rules for amber list countries 'very disappointing'
Hong Kong and Taiwan could also go green, he added, while Canada is another possibility, although its government is not currently allowing visitors from the UK.
People arriving in Britain - which is battling its own surge in cases - from green list destinations are not required to self-isolate.
The government's travel lists are usually updated on Thursdays, however reports have suggested it could come a day earlier this week, with Transport Secretary Grant Shapps due to face the media on Wednesday morning.
Mr Boyle also predicted Indonesia and Sierra Leone could go from amber to red, while Bahrain could go the other way due to "case rates plummeting".
People arriving in the UK from red-list locations must spend 11 nights at a quarantine hotel, which costs £1,750 for solo travellers.
The price of red-list quarantine hotels could potentially rise
It comes as a couple were barred from making a trip to Malta as they had been given an Indian-made batch of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, according to The Daily Telegraph.
Boris Johnson has recently tried to play down concerns that up to five million Brits could be barred from holidaying in the European Union (EU) because their jabs are not recognised by its passport scheme.
The problem centres on Covishield doses made by the Serum Institute of India, which - despite being the same as other AstraZeneca vaccines - has not been authorised by Europe's regulator and is therefore not recognised by the EU.
The prime minister has previously stated he was "very confident" Covishield would not cause an issue, but Steve and Glenda Hardy, 64 and 63, told the newspaper they were turned back at Manchester airport at 3:30am on Friday when they tried to board a flight to Malta.
The Hull couple, who were given Indian manufactured doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine in March, said they had to holiday in Llandudno, Wales, instead.
