The debate over quarantine measures for travellers to the UK has intensified with the Spanish government putting more pressure on Downing Street to rethink its policy on journeys to and from Spain. The head of Heathrow Airport has called for a comprehensive testing system, to avoid the need for sudden quarantine measures. But ministers say that airport testing only identifies a small minority of those infected. The UK government says there is no viable alternative to the 14-day quarantine period for travellers returning from Spain. Spanish ministers have appealed again for the UK quarantine rules to be relaxed, especially for the Balearic and Canary Islands which are vital to Spain’s tourism industry and are currently reporting relatively low rates of infection. The latest figures from Spain’s health ministry show just there were 8.35 coronavirus cases per 100,000 people in the Balearic Islands in the past 7 days. The UK has been running at around twice that rate. The recent recent spikes in coronavirus across Europe could be driven principally by young people according to the World Health Organisation. It says that several countries in Europe have seen a higher proportion of new cases among young people. Boris Johnson has said there are signs that a second wave of the pandemic is developing in some parts of Europe. Huw Edwards presents BBC News at Ten reporting from Gavin Lee in Spain and Science Editor David Shukman.
Spain puts pressure on UK to rethink its quarantine policy – BBC News
