London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Jul 22, 2025

Why isn't the UK testing travellers on arrival?

A holiday in Spain now means two weeks of quarantine on return to the UK to help stop the spread of coronavirus across borders.

Some countries, such as Iceland, offer travellers a choice on arrival if they have stayed in areas with high virus levels.

Anyone entering must either self-quarantine for 14 days or get tested for Covid-19.

And Germany is planning compulsory tests at its airports for anyone arriving from a high-risk country.


Why isn't the UK doing this?

The UK government has been looking at the merits and risks of test-on-arrival checks for travellers.

At the moment, it says it has no plans to introduce testing at airports, saying it is not just logistically difficult but risks missing some cases of coronavirus.

It says asking travellers to self-isolate for 14 days instead reduces the risk to public health, but is keeping all quarantine measures under review.


What is the problem with testing?

No test is perfect.

Nose or throat swab tests are available that can detect if someone is currently infected with coronavirus.

They are safe and accurate, but can sometimes give a false negative result.

That means some people who have the test may be incorrectly given the all clear when they actually have the virus and could spread it to others.


Why do false test results occur?

People who have just caught coronavirus might not yet have sufficient amounts of the virus in their body for the test to detect.

It can take days for the virus to reach detectable levels, meaning someone who tests negative could still be incubating an infection.

Dr Joshua Moon from the University of Sussex Business School said: "This is concerning as a negative test result may give people a false sense of security."

Doing a swab test correctly can also be a bit tricky - you have to push the long, skinny swab stick deep into the nose or throat.

If it doesn't go in far enough then the sample may not be good enough to do the test or get a reliable result.


Couldn't it still be useful and more convenient than quarantine?

The government says it is important to take a cautious approach. Nobody wants to see rates of coronavirus rising again.

If every traveller returning from high-infection countries properly adheres to the fortnight of quarantine - by staying at home and not going to the shops or having visitors - then the risk of spreading coronavirus is extremely low.

No policy or test is infallible, however.

It comes down to balancing risks and understanding what is feasible.

Prof Rowland Kao, professor of veterinary epidemiology and data science at the University of Edinburgh, says "test on arrival" would not have to be perfect, but would have to reduce the risk of spread sufficiently.

"As it stands, we have to be prepared to introduce quarantine or close borders to many countries, and also be prepared for restrictions to be put in place should UK cases start rising again as could very well happen. As an alternative, government could fund a scientifically designed pilot, where individuals are tested at the airport in sufficient numbers and monitored thereafter to determine whether such an approach would work."


How would it work?

Private testing companies have suggested doing a pilot study in the UK.

The scheme would allow travellers to book a test conducted at the airport on arrival by a trained nurse and processed in seven to 24 hours.

In theory, and if the government agreed, travellers with a negative test result could then be released from quarantine and would only need to self-isolate if, like anyone else, they developed symptoms.

A spokesperson for Swissport and Collinson (which are proposing a testing pilot in the UK) said: "This testing on arrival concept provides a safe way to open key trade routes for the UK, and can act as a critical backstop for when countries currently marked as green [lower risk] experience spikes in cases that result in them needing to be reclassified as requiring a quarantine period, as we have seen with Spain."

Prof Paul Hunter, an expert in health protection at the University of East Anglia, has reservations: "Given that the incubation period of Covid-19 is, on average five to six days and maybe the test may become positive about one day before onset of symptoms, and also given that the test is far from 100% sensitive even in clinically ill patients, airport screening as suggested will miss a substantial proportion of infected people."

Prof Steven Evans, from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), says people testing negative might need a second test a few days later to be sure they were still negative, because some people can have and spread the virus without experiencing any symptoms themselves.

Dr Sam Clifford, also from the LSHTM, has done some research on the topic. He says doing a week of quarantine with a swab test on day seven might be a compromise.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
×