Airport hotels booked as quarantine tightens

Thousands of hotel rooms, including some near Birmingham Airport, are being block-booked by the government hours after it confirmed quarantine rules related to Covid variant hotspots will begin on 15 February.

Ministers expect more than 1,000 UK residents a day to return from places where new variants are prevalent. They must pay to stay in a hotel for 10 nights, with security accompanying them if they go outside.

Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce, (GBCC) has continued to lobby for additional support for the airport and the wider aviation industry which has been so badly hit by the restrictions imposed around coronavirus.

Paul Faulkner, the GBCC 's chief executive said: “The latest measures are likely to stem the flow of travellers returning from high risk areas as the Government attempts to limit the spread of new variants of the virus over the coming weeks.

“Nevertheless, it 's clear that these measures will further impact the aviation industry and those associated sectors that are reliant on air travel.

“Ahead of the budget, it 's vital the Government set outs a detailed plan on how they intend to save thousands of jobs and help those businesses that depend on aviation - it 's so frustrating to see that anchor institutions such as Birmingham Airport are still awaiting details on a specific package of support for the industry.

“We can only hope the Government does the right thing and acts now to prevent a long term decline for the aviation sector and the catastrophic impact that would on our region and beyond. ”

The hotel quarantine requirements are being introduced in an effort to control the spread of new variants of coronavirus first identified in South Africa and Brazil, which scientists believe may be more infectious and may reduce the effectiveness of vaccines.

The rules affect UK residents and Irish nationals travelling from 33 countries on the "red list" - which covers much of South America, southern Africa, the United Arab Emirates and Portugal.

Non-UK travellers from these locations are currently banned from entry anyway, so that is why they are not - at this time - affected by the quarantine plan.

Hotels near airports including Birmingham, Heathrow, Gatwick, London City, Bristol, Manchester, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen are expected to be booked up for quarantine.

The government said it is working "at pace" to secure the rooms it needs and has had discussions with more than 60 companies in the hotel and travel industries.

"In the face of new variants, it is important that the government continues to take the necessary steps to protect people and save lives," a Department of Health statement said.

With the government's current ban on British people going abroad for anything but essential travel, many hotels in and around airports have lost bookings.

So that means they may be more likely to agree to the government's main requirement that quarantine hotels agree to turn away all other customers and have their premises used solely by quarantining travellers.

The hotels would also be required to work with government-approved security staff, according to a report by the BBC.

These security guards will patrol inside and outside the hotel to "prevent unauthorised access".

Anyone wanting to smoke outside or get fresh air will also be escorted by security staff.

Quarantined travellers will be served three meals a day in their rooms, with hot and cold options. Tea, coffee, fruit and water will be available.

An industry source said the government estimated quarantine could cost about £80 a night.