Govt 'still working on hotel quarantine plan'

The concession from Number 10 came after prime minister Boris Johnson mistakenly told the nation on Wednesday (3 February) health secretary Matt Hancock would outline the measures the following day.

It also followed a claim by Best Western Hotels chief executive Rob Paterson that the chain had been "kept in the dark" and "not heard anything other than very broad information" about the policy.

On Thursday (4 February), the prime minister’s official spokesperson said the government was continuing to work on ensuring the policy was introduced successfully, the BBC reported.

"There are operational aspects of the policy that need to be completed and once they are we will set out the full details next week," the spokesperson added.

To date, the government has confirmed arrivals from 33 high-risk countries would be met at airports and taken to government-appointed hotel accommodation to serve 10 days "supervised" self-isolation.

However, neither Johnson nor home secretary Priti Patel have yet been able to give a definitive start date for the policy, despite appearances in the House of Commons to firm up the policy.