Source · Select Committees · Culture, Media and Sport Committee
Recommendation 20
20
Paragraph: 83
The issue of quarantine periods is beyond our remit, so we will limit our comments...
Conclusion
The issue of quarantine periods is beyond our remit, so we will limit our comments to saying that the timing and guidance about quarantining have been far from clear. Whilst we understand that there was considerable uncertainty around how the pandemic developed internationally, the tourism sector was in limbo for over two months with no certainty as to whether an international visitor market would exist for the rest of 2020. As of July 2020, the Government has announced a list of ‘low risk’, exempt countries from quarantining on arrival in England. We wholeheartedly support calls for the Department for Culture Media and Sport to work with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Department for Transport to clearly communicate information about international travel agreements to the tourism sector, including the science behind the decisions and the plans for reviewing the effectiveness of the agreements.
Paragraph Reference:
83
Government Response
Acknowledged
HM Government
Acknowledged
The Government has kept quarantine and travel corridor arrangements under regular review, and has added or removed countries from the list on several occasions since the implementation of quarantine policy. Risk assessments are conducted by the Joint Biosecurity Centre, in close consultation with Public Health England and the Chief Medical Officer. The assessment draws on a range of factors including the prevalence of Covid-19, the number of new cases and the potential trajectory of the disease in the country in question. international travel agreements, including the science behind the decisions. Officials from the Department for Transport and the Home Office have attended the Visitor Economy Working Group and the Tourism Industry Events Response forum (chaired by VisitBritain) on various occasions to discuss this policy with the tourism industry. Key tourism stakeholders are also included on a pre-announcement notification list.