There are now four indications of the pandemic’s severity:

Green: If the notification rate is less than 25 and the test positivity rate is less than 4%.

Orange: If notification rate is less than 50 but the test positivity rate is 4% or more, or if the notification rate ranges from 25 to 150 but the test positivity rate is less than 4%.

Red: If the notification rate is 50 or more and the test positivity rate is 4% or more, or if the notification rate is more than 150.

Grey: If insufficient information is available or if the testing rate is 300 or less.

As well as the EU members, data is also provided for Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, but not the UK.

The EU said: “On the basis of the common map, member states will then decide whether they introduce certain restrictions, such as quarantine or tests, on travellers coming from other areas.
 
“Member states have agreed that there will be no restrictions, such as quarantine or testing, on travellers coming from ‘green’ regions.”

It added: “Member states that consider it necessary to introduce restrictions to free movement, based on their own decision-making processes, could require persons travelling from an area classified other than ‘green’ to quarantine and/or undergo a test for Covid-19 infection after arrival.”

The EU said the traffic lights system was important “for the millions of citizens who rely on cross-border travel every day and crucial for our efforts to start safely re-building the economy”.