EU agrees to ease travel restrictions

The BBC reported that the EU will open up to unvaccinated travellers from countries with a rate of Covid infection below 75 cases per 100,000, with a so-called ‘white list’, which will take into account the incidence of Covid-19 infection in individual source markets, and infection trends.

The rate of Covid infection in the UK is currently 22 per 100,000, although there are growing concerns about the spread of the Indian variant of Covid-19, particularly in the north-west of England. EU diplomats have also recommended non-essential travel should be allowed from outside the EU for people who have been fully vaccinated.

EU spokesperson Ana Ascencao e Silva tweeted that the plans were formally adopted and that full details would follow later this week. According to her, the plans include certain waivers for vaccinated persons, easing the criteria to lift restrictions for third countries and an emergency brake mechanism to react to variants of interest or concern.