Transport secretary Grant Shapps said in a tweet: “We are removing Italy, Vatican City and San Marino from the travel corridor list.
“However, note that the implementation date is moved to 4am on Sunday 18 October and applies UK-wide. If you arrive from these destinations you will need to self-isolate.”
A joint Department for Transport and Foreign Office statement said: "Data has indicated the weekly cases and test positivity are increasing in Italy and so ministers have taken the decision to remove the destinations."
Flavio Zappacosta, the Italian Tourist board’s manager for UK and Ireland, said: “It is, of course, very disappointing to learn of the announcement that Italy has been removed from the UK’s safe travel list today.
"Our cities, coasts, countryside and major attractions are world class and we have implemented robust protocols to keep our visitors safe so this is a very disappointing development for tourism in Italy and will surely delay our recovery.
"We would like to see testing at UK airports implemented as soon as possible as this could help alleviate the quarantine issue and establish consumer confidence once more in visiting such a popular destination as Italy.”
But there was better news for the Greek island of Crete with its travel corridor due to be restored from 4am on Sunday.
“If you arrive from Crete, you will no longer need to self-isolate,” said Shapps. “Also this week, the whole of the UK is now aligned with our advice around all of the Greek islands.”
The government statement added: "The JBC (Joint Biosecurity Centre)’s latest risk assessment for Crete indicates that the risks to UK public health from travellers returning from there has decreased to an acceptable level."
