Italy imposes quarantine on UK visitors, opens door to USA, Canada, Japan, EU

FILE PHOTO: A passenger wearing a protective face mask walks past a sign indicating to keep the social distancing at Fiumicino Airport, one of the two airports in the world to obtain the ‘Biosafety Trust certification’ for the correct application of security measures to prevent infections, following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Rome, Italy June 30, 2020. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane/File Photo

ROME — Italy has introduced a mandatory five-day quarantine for visitors from Britain, Health Minister Roberto Speranza said on Friday, as concerns grow over a highly contagious coronavirus variant that is spreading in the nation.

At the same time, Italy is lifting curbs on travelers from the United States, Canada, Japan, and other European Union states if they have a green pass showing they are vaccinated or recently tested negative, the minister wrote on Facebook.

A ban on people arriving from India, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka would remain in place, he added.

The minister said travelers from Britain would also have to be tested, but he did not say if the measures were being introduced immediately.

Italy is following in the footsteps of France, Austria, and Germany, which have already introduced varying curbs on those entering from Britain.

Britain on Friday said there had been a 79% increase in weekly reported cases of the Delta coronavirus variant, which was first identified in India. The variant now comprises 91% of sequenced cases, Public Health England said.