Germany bans travel from UK from Monday, British tourists on transport 'not allowed'

In an apparent move to curb the Omicron spread, Germany is set to impose a strict travel ban on the arrivals from the UK effective midnight on Sunday at 11 pm UK time, the country’s public health authority told the press conference on Saturday, Dec. 18.

All airlines will be banned from transporting British tourists to Germany, and only the German residents, their partners and children, and transit passengers from Germany will be allowed on the transportation to move around the country, The Guardian newspaper reported. Germany will no longer see the proof of vaccination for those entering the country, anyone coming from outside will now be asked to produce a negative RT-PCR test and quarantine for 14 days. 

The Robert Koch Institute declared the UK as the virus variant area of concern due to a mounting caseload of the Omicron variant as it classified the country as having the highest COVID-19 risk level. As of December 18, the confirmed Omicron-variant cases in the UK hit almost 25,000, with 7 deaths reported from the COVID-19. The variant cases sharply rose by 10,000 cases in just 24 hours earlier, the UK Health Security Agency said in a statement.

UK government is now mulling a two-week circuit breaker lockdown by the end of this week to control the coronavirus’ rising trajectory. The Financial Times reports that British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was considering umpteen options for the lockdown including so-called Plan C that ranges from "mild guidance to nudge people, right through to lockdown”. 

France bans UK citizens from entering, lengthy tailbacks on motorway

From Monday, tourist travel will be banned for the Britons in Germany as the European country over the past couple of months has been battling with the mounting caseload of the virus after the EU turned the globe’s new epicentre in November. France imposed similar restrictions which came into force at 11 pm on Friday.

Long queues of lorries from the UK caused a traffic backlog and lengthy tailbacks on the M20 motorway in Kent heading to Dover. The entrance to the Channel Tunnel on Saturday was jammed with traffic as Christmas travel plans for many citizens were snubbed. UK citizens now need urgent and “compelling reasons” to enter France but the Hauliers, transport workers, and French nationals at this time are being given an exception.