Airport bosses warn Boris Johnson of 'irreparable' damage without tests on arrival

Boris Johnson has been warned by the bosses of the UK’s 20 biggest airports he risks “irreparable damage” to the economy unless he moves to replace quarantine with Covid-19 testing in the next week. In a letter to the PM and Chancellor, the signatories, including bosses at Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester, Birmingham and Luton, give Johnson seven days to give the go ahead to testing as one of a series of measures to prevent the loss of up to 110,000 aviation and allied industry jobs. Ministers are also considering following Wales by sanctioning regional “travel corridors” where visitors to “low risk” islands like Madeira and the Azores would be exempt from quarantine despite travel bans on the mainland. A decision could come as early as Monday, say industry sources. It comes as England on Sunday saw it's biggest daily toll of coronavirus infections since May, as 2,988 new cases were, announced prompting Health Secretary Matt Hancock to appeal to young people not to “infect their grandparents”. Their appeal came as an influential committee of MPs urged Johnson to move quicker to save Britain's stricken aviation sector. Huw Merriman, chair of the transport committee, said his failure to endorse airport testing was adding "further barriers to travel.”<br/>