London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Oct 02, 2025

Covid: 'Build walls higher' to stop Covid variants, says FM

Covid: 'Build walls higher' to stop Covid variants, says FM

The UK should "build walls higher" to stop new variants entering the country, Wales' First Minister Mark Drakeford has said.

As part of England's roadmap out of lockdown, the UK Government has said international travel could resume no earlier than 17 May.

But Welsh and UK Labour leaders say it is too soon. Sir Keir Starmer said not enough had been done to secure borders.

Boris Johnson says the current system is among the toughest in the world.

Welsh Conservative Senedd leader Andrew RT Davies called Mr Drakeford's comments "Trump-esque".

The two Labour politicians made the comments in a joint virtual event on Monday.

It comes as health officials in England attempt to trace one person who has been infected with a concerning coronavirus variant first found in Brazil.

It is one of six cases of the P1 variant found in the UK in February.

Travellers to England from 33 countries have been required to quarantine in hotels for 10 days, since earlier last month.

Wales has adopted the same rules as England, while in Scotland the rule applies to international travellers from all countries.

Sir Keir said the search for the individual in England infected with a variant first found in Brazil "demonstrates the slowness of the government to close off even the major routes, but also the unwillingness to confront the fact that the virus doesn't travel by direct flights".

"I still think we have not secured our borders in the way that we should have done and the sooner that's done the better."

Mr Drakeford said the mid-May travel date "worries me hugely".

Wales saw a "big importation" of virus last September when people returned from foreign holidays, he said.

"I would build the walls higher for now against the risk that we would bring in to this country the variants that could brewing in any part of the world and could then put at risk all the careful work that we have done to try to keep Wales safe."

Later, at a press conference Mr Drakeford said Cardiff Airport, which is owned by the Welsh Government, would not take any flights from countries on the so-called "red list".

He said he would have the policy "the opposite way to the UK Government".

"I would say we shouldn't be having international travel, but here is a list of countries where we are confident that things are under control".

No "red list" flights will be allowed at Cardiff Airport, says Mark Drakeford

Prime Minister Boris Johnson defended the UK Government's measures on Monday.

"We have got one of the toughest border regimes anywhere in the world for stopping people coming in to this country who may have variants of concern," he said.

He said the government had moved "as fast as we could" with introducing hotel quarantine measures, describing it as a "very tough regime".

Andrew RT Davies told BBC Wales the first minister was "full of hot air".

'Not time for travel'


"Let's not forget back last June when Ryanair were flying flights in [to Cardiff] from Faro and Malaga," he said, adding "all" the Welsh Government had done in response was "write a letter".

Plaid Cymru's Helen Mary Jones agreed with the first minister that "this was not the time for international travel" and said restrictions should remain tight for the time being.

A UK Government spokesman said: "We continue to take every necessary step to protect the public and prevent the spread of the virus, including the stringent border measures currently in place.

"The reformed Global Travel Taskforce will assess how we can safely facilitate international travel when the time is right and while managing the risk of imported cases and variants."


This animated map shows how the case rate has changed across Wales since December


Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
Disney Reinstates ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after Six-Day Suspension over Charlie Kirk Comments
U.S. Prosecutors Move to Break Up Google’s Advertising Monopoly
Nvidia Pledges Up to $100 Billion Investment in OpenAI to Power Massive AI Data Center Build-Out
U.S. Signals ‘Large and Forceful’ Support for Argentina Amid Market Turmoil
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
Vietnam Faces Up to $25 Billion Export Loss as U.S. Tariffs Bite
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Indonesia Court Upholds Military Law Amid Concerns Over Expanded Civilian Role
Larry Ellison, Michael Dell and Rupert Murdoch Join Trump-Backed Bid to Take Over TikTok
Trump and Musk Reunite Publicly for First Time Since Fallout at Kirk Memorial
Vietnam Closes 86 Million Untouched Bank Accounts Over Biometric ID Rules
×