London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Oct 07, 2025

UK transport secretary says travellers abroad should use ‘common sense’ after govt gets accused of mixed-messaging

UK transport secretary says travellers abroad should use ‘common sense’ after govt gets accused of mixed-messaging

The UK’s senior transportation official has said people should think twice and use common sense before going to amber- and red-listed countries. The opposition earlier said the government's stance on foreign travel was confusing.

“We’ve moved away from a situation where everything is ‘it’s banned, it’s illegal’, I know we’ve got very used to this in the last year,” Secretary of State for Transport Grant Shapps told Sky News on Thursday.

“We’re moving away from that and asking people to apply a bit of common sense,” Shapps added.

The scheme, which came into effect this month, has since divided countries into three groups, based on how well they manage the spread of coronavirus, and on their vaccination efforts. Upon returning from the countries on the ‘green list,’ which includes Israel, Australia and New Zealand, UK citizens must take a Covid-19 test.

The much longer ‘amber list’ includes UK’s neighbours France and Germany, popular tourist spots Spain, Italy and Greece, as well as states like the US and Canada. After returning from these countries, travellers must take two Covid-19 tests and self-isolate at home for 10 days.

People coming back from any ‘red-list’ countries are required to get tested and be quarantined under supervision inside a hotel. The red list mostly includes countries in Africa, Asia and South America.

Shapps explained that every country automatically lands in the amber list until the government-run Joint Biosecurity Centre advises to move it to the green or red list.

"The default is amber. But amber is not ‘please, go and visit there’. There’s a lot of cost and hassle and quarantine required when you go to these countries. And it is being very strictly enforced."


There was some confusion this week after Environment Secretary George Eustice told reporters that people could go to amber-listed countries “if they feel the need” to visit family and friends, as long as they follow the quarantine rules when returning. Welsh Home Secretary Simon Hart said “a lot of people” will equate holidays with essential travel.

This prompted Labour Party leader Keir Starmer to accuse the government of having “lost control of the messaging.”

Responding to Starmer’s criticism, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that people should not go to amber-listed countries “except for some extreme circumstance,” like a serious illness of a family member. The PM said the government was “trying to move away from endlessly legislating everything” and was more relying on ordinary people acting responsibly.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock also said it was “crystal clear” that people should not go to amber- and red-listed countries on holidays.

The head of EasyJet airline, Johan Lundgren, slammed the government’s stance on foreign travel as “very confusing” and said that it was “absolutely legal to travel to amber-list countries.” He noted that the travel ban had ended on Monday, and the color-coded scheme was designed to allow people to go overseas again.

“There was no indication [passengers] shouldn’t travel to these countries, because that’s what the restriction was supposed to do,” Lundgren said, adding that the new scheme was meant to “make sure you could do this in a safe way.”

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Three Scientists Awarded Nobel Prize in Medicine for Discovery of Immune Self-Tolerance Mechanism
OpenAI and AMD Forge Landmark AI-Chip Alliance with Equity Option
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
France Names New Government Amid Political Crisis
Trump Stands Firm in Shutdown Showdown and Declares War on Drug Cartels — Turning Crisis into Opportunity
Surge of U.S. Billionaires Transforms London’s Peninsula Apartments into Ultra-Luxury Stronghold
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Jeff Bezos Calls AI Surge a ‘Good’ Bubble, Urges Focus on Lasting Innovation
Japan’s Ruling Party Chooses Sanae Takaichi, Clearing Path to First Female Prime Minister
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Taylor Swift’s ‘Showgirl’ Launch Extends Billion-Dollar Empire
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
×