Travel secretary Grant Shapps said today that the government was trying to make flying as cheap as possible and was looking at alternatives to the current PCR tests for Covid-19, which might include a cheaper lateral flow option.
“We are committed as a government to work to drive those costs down, and also in time of course review potentially the type of test.”
Airlines UK, the industry trade body, described the scheme as presented currently as a further setback for ‘an industry on its knees’.
“The insistence on expensive and unnecessary PCR testing rather than rapid testing - even for low-risk countries - will pose an unsustainable burden on passengers, making travel unviable and unaffordable for many people," said chief executive Tim Alderslade.
Airlines have told the government that its planned traffic light system to help flights resume is too expensive and not the reopening they were promised.
On Monday, PM Boris Johnson flagged the idea of red, amber and green classifications for countries depending on the Covid-19 risk.
The plan means though that even travellers from green countries will require a PCR test on arrival back in the UK, which will cost £100, an amount which will double for those also having a test before departure.
EasyJet CEO , Johan Lundgren said it would mean international travel would only be open to those who could afford it.
The UK government has said previously it intends to review how and when flights and overseas travel resume at the end of June, July and in October.
The classification of countries as either red, amber or green, though, is expected to revealed in two to three weeks, but it is not clear yet whether fights will be allowed on 17 May.
Guidance from the Department for Transport is that: "It is too early to predict which countries will be on which list over the summer, and the government continues to consider a range of factors to inform the restrictions placed on them.
"We will set out by early May which countries will fall into which category, as well as confirming whether international travel can resume from 17 May."
Under the traffic light system, travellers might be required to self-isolate, stay in hotels or take compulsory COVID tests depending on which category of country a passenger arrives from.
.jpg)
