Despite weeks of assurances from government ministers after Grant Shapps set out the plan last month, it was late on Thursday (14 October) that travel’s worries were finally allayed thanks to a tweet from the transport secretary.
"Mandatory PCR tests will be gone in time for October half-term for vaccinated adults and families seeking some winter sun abroad," wrote Shapps. "From 24 October, take a cheaper lateral flow test on return, to make travelling easier and simpler for everyone."
It is widely regarded throughout travel as being the last piece, for now, of a complex jigsaw that – once complete on 24 October – will represent the most meaningful opening up of international travel since the onset of the Covid pandemic last March.
It comes after the government axed pre-departure testing for fully vaccinated travellers to the UK earlier this month, and then cut the UK’s red list to just seven countries.
The Foreign Office, meanwhile, has also gone back to its customary travel advice regime, stripping away its blanket Covid travel advisories and broadly aligning its advice with that laid down by the traffic light regime.
Tim Alderslade, chief executive of Airlines UK, the trade body for UK registered carriers, said: “This is great news and we’re pleased to get it over the line in time for the crucial half-term period, which will be a massive relief to families desperate to get away this autumn. Vaccinated passengers can be reassured that they do not need to book or take an expensive PCR test when they return to the UK, which will further reduce the cost of travel.
"It adds to the positive news from last week with the substantial reduction of the red list and announcement of further mutual recognition of vaccines, and taken together this is a major step forward that will support the desperately needed recovery of our sector.”
‘Long overdue’
Clive Wratten, chief executive of the Business Travel Association, added: “Expensive PCR tests have been a major financial and logistical barrier to business and leisure travel, and the BTA welcomes their long overdue removal. To continue the long road to recovery, it’s vital that the government now takes a leadership role in developing consistent international protocols for entry.”
From 24 October, fully vaccinated arrivals in the UK will no longer have to book and pay for an expensive Day 2 PCR test and instead will be able to use a cheaper, quicker lateral flow test. Day 2 tests have been seen as a major barrier to the resumption of international travel, particularly leisure travel, with tests costing anything from £40pp up to in excess of £100pp, adding significant cost to trips – especially for families.
