Quarantine will be slashed from 14 days to five when the UK Government finally announces it plans to kick-start the travel industry under a new ‘test and release’ scheme.
The easing of travel curbs will allow passengers returning to the UK from "high risk" countries to cut short the isolation period if they test negative on the fifth day of confinement.
The changes are expected to be confirmed by transport secretary Grant Shapps later today, Monday, and will be hugely welcomed by tour operators, airlines and airports.
Tests are expected to be expensive - costing up to £150 - but they are expected to be rapid turnaround with results in less than an hour.
The new guidelines are expected to start by December 15 following recommendations from the government Global Travel Taskforce.
Other measures likely to be announced include the start of pre-depature Covid testing, which will remove the need for any quarantine restrictions.
This would let passengers take a test 72 hours before leaving for their trip. Travel corridors to countries with low infection rates will remain and continue to be modified on a weekly basis.
Measures will form part of the Government's ‘Covid Winter Plan’ that will be outlined later today.
Changes are reported to be based on analysis of data from more than 105,000 passengers which found that tests on the fifth day of quarantine detected between 83 per cent and 90 per cent of Covid cases from passengers arriving in Canada, Iceland, France and Jersey.
Meanwhile, Gatwick Airport has announced a testing facility will open later this month promising to offer “fast and accurate” PCR swab tests, with results available the next day.
The service could help passengers travelling to destinations requiring them to produce evidence of a recent negative Covid-19 test.
Gatwick said it could also be used by passengers arriving in the UK to reduce self-isolation periods, depending on changes in Government policy.
