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Airlines and airports sue UK over Covid-19 travel rules

They demand full transparency over the UK’s restrictions

Ireland-based low-cost carrier Ryanair and Manchester Airport Group have recently filed a case against the UK government, demanding full transparency over the Covid-19 travel restrictions, according to the media. Reports suggest several other unnamed UK-based carriers also demand the same.

Ryanair and Manchester Airport Group initiated the case seeking a complete judicial review of the policy of the UK government. They argue that the rules demand visitors to undergo Covid-19 testing and quarantine based on their place of departure. In addition, the plaintiffs want the government to explain its decisions on categorising countries by risk and publish supporting data to justify the recent regulations laid on short notice.

The UK has categorised countries as green, amber, and red regarding the risk of virus transmission. However, this categorising is seen to cause unjustified harm to the aviation industry mainly because the amber risk category includes the US and most European countries.

Visitors from the UK are allowed to travel to amber regions but have to be limited to essential purposes. Critics find this to be contradictory to the rules laid in the first place. In addition, upon arrival to the UK, travellers should take two Covid tests apart from the one before the departure, as a part of a ten-day quarantine requirement, including the fully vaccinated travellers. The firms expressed that the entire process is expensive and burdensome.

It is to note that earlier this week, the UK government announced the plan to delay relaxing the domestic Covid-19 restrictions due to the surging cases of the Delta Variant. Yet, the state is preparing to lift most of the restrictions by July for vaccinated foreigners.

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