Up to 270,000 people set to fly to amber list countries despite government warning

Britons should only go to amber destinations ‘for some extreme circumstance, such as the serious illness of a family member,’ says Boris Johnson

(REUTERS)

It’s estimated that up to 270,000 people will be flying from the UK to amber list countries in the next few days, despite the government warning Britons not to visit non-green list destinations on holiday.

During Prime Minister’s Questions yesterday, Boris Johnson said that people should only be travelling to amber destinations “for some extreme circumstance, such as the serious illness of a family member”.

However, as of Monday 17 May, international leisure travel is no longer illegal in England, regardless of whether the country a traveller is heading to has been rated green, amber or red.

More than 1,300 flights are scheduled to fly to amber countries between 19 and 23 May, reports the Telegraph.

This equates to a total of up to 54,000 passengers a day, with global aviation data firm Cirium revealing that the number of scheduled flights to holiday favourite Spain is set to double over the next few days, from 38 flights on Wednesday to 80 on Saturday, in response to heightened demand.

Daily flights to Italy are expected to treble from six to 19, while France services look set to rise from six to 10.

Recreational travel reopened on Monday under a traffic light system, with countries classified as green, amber or red with restrictions to match based on the risk of arrivals importing Covid infections back into the UK.

The new scheme has proved confusing for holidaymakers and government ministers alike.

Mr Hancock told a Downing Street press conference: “If you want to holiday abroad, that is what the 'green list' is for, or holiday at home,” while environment secretary George Eustice said in a separate interview that Brits could visit amber countries to spend time with “friends and family”.

Many travellers have questioned why there is an amber list at all, if the warning not to travel to these countries is no different to the advice applied to the red list.