Brits who have had both Covd jabs could soon be allowed to travel to amber list countries without needing to self-isolate on return, a Tory minister has confirmed.
New plans being considered by the Government could pave the way for double-jabbed sunseekers to enjoy quarantine-free summer holidays at popular hotspots in Europe and the US.
The proposals means amber list nations will become green for fully-vaccinated Brits, The Telegraph reports.
The plans are at an early stage with Matt Hancock, the Health Secretary, claimed to be "open" to the change after previously fighting for tougher border restrictions.
Tory minister Jesse Norman confirmed the plan is being looked at, telling Sky News: "This is one of those things that’s being considered."
Mr Norman said: "The government’s keeping all these fast-moving developments under a fairly close review.
"It’s certainly looking at all the options here, and we don’t want to be left behind by countries which may be adopting a two jabs approach if it can be done safely, carefully and securely."
Asked if such an approach would be age discrimination to people who've only had one dose, Mr Norman said: "Let’s see where we get to, then we can have a conversation about balancing the needs of all the people concerned.
"And it may well be that there are approaches we can take that are able to meet the needs of people who aren’t fully vaccinated. Let’s wait and see how that evolves."
Boris Johnson's spokesman said: "At this stage in the pandemic our current approach is the right one but we keep our measures under review." But he added: "Absolutely no decisions have been made on that."
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The plans are said to be ready to be discussed by the Cabinet Covid operations committee within the next two weeks.
This is before the June 28 deadline when ministers are expected to review the current traffic light system for testing and quarantine rules for travellers.
Officials are yet to decide if any new rules will be limited to just returning Britons or extended to all arrivals.
They are also undecided on what exemptions there could be for those who could not be jabbed and whether children under 18 would have to quarantine.
A source said: "It is still at an early stage and it is not clear whether it will be worked out in time for the end of the month. There is an awful lot to do. The devil is in the detail."
The Government has been urged to review the nation's current travel rules by MPs and travel chiefs who fear the UK could suffer economically as Europe is lifting restrictions for double-jabbed travellers.
The EU added the US and Hong Kong, key trading partners, to its "white list" for jabbed visitors to avoid tests or quarantine on Wednesday.
While at least 33 countries, including Germany, France, Spain and Greece, allow vaccinated passengers without them having to quarantine.
A government spokesman said: "Recognising the strong strategic rationale and success of the vaccine programme, we have commenced work to consider the role of vaccinations in shaping a different set of health and testing measures for inbound travel."
Changes to the current travel regime have been urged by Tory MPs and travel chiefs who fear the UK could lose out to Europe economically as it lifts restrictions for vaccinated travellers.
Under the UK's traffic light system there are just 11 countries on the green list – of which Iceland, Gibraltar and Israel are the only viable holiday destinations.
Anyone travelling to them will not have to quarantine but must have a pre-departure test followed by a PCR test on return to the UK to allow health officials to detect any variants.
At the moment anyone travelling from an amber country must have a pre-departure test, then PCR tests on days two and eight of self-isolation.
They have the option of a test to release on day five.
A Government spokeswoman told the Mirror: “As set out in the Global Travel Taskforce, we are working with industry for a safe return to international travel, guided by one overwhelming priority - public health. Decisions on our traffic light system are kept under constant review, and based on a range of health factors.
“Recognising the strong strategic rationale and success of the vaccine programme, we have commenced work to consider the role of vaccinations in shaping a different set of health and testing measures for inbound travel.”
