England to require travellers to show negative COVID tests

Britain’s government will require people entering England to present a negative COVID-19 test result on arrival starting next week to protect against new strains of the coronavirus from other countries, the government said on Friday. Passengers arriving by boat, plane or train will have to take a test up to 72 hours before departing for England, the transport ministry said, mirroring measures taken by many other countries around the world. “We already have significant measures in place to prevent imported cases of COVID-19, but with new strains of the virus developing internationally we must take further precautions,” Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said. British PM Boris Johnson ordered a new lockdown for England this week after a surge in cases linked to a new variant of the coronavirus believed to have originated in the country. On Thursday, Britain said it would extend a ban on travellers entering England from South Africa to other southern African countries to prevent the spread of a variant identified in South Africa. Exemptions to the new testing requirement rule would be offered to hauliers, children under 11, crews and people travelling from countries where tests are not available, the government said. Passengers will be subject to a fine of GBP500 if they fail to comply with the new regulations. Britain’s airline industry said it recognised the need to act to introduce pre-departure testing but only as a short-term, emergency measure.<br/>