• Wednesday, May 01, 2024
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BusinessDay

Nigeria, other African nations could exit U.K. Red list in 12 hours

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The UK government is expected to remove all 11 countries from England’s red list, easing travel restrictions.

Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe are on the list.

The expectation is that the red list will be emptied at 4am tomorrow, meaning no more hotel quarantine from South Africa, Nigeria and nine other African nations.

The red list was reintroduced in late November as precaution after the emergence of the Omicron variant.

Read also: UK never blacklisted Med-View Airline – Mgt

But ministers have cited the further spread of the variant as a reason for reviewing travel rules.

Currently, all UK arrivals from red list countries must pay for and self-isolate in a pre-booked, government-approved hotel for 10 days.

They must also take Covid tests within 48 hours of setting off for the UK and PCR tests within two days of their arrival.

Travel expert Simon Calder tweeted: “Key point: will people currently in now pointless hotel quarantine be able to leave?”