Common travel area restrictions updated

A ban on travel to and from Jersey is being introduced following a significant increase in the number of positive cases of coronavirus (COVID-19).

The ban will take effect at 6pm on Friday (11 December), alongside the lifting of travel restrictions to and from most of the Republic of Ireland.

The Republic of Ireland is now seeing lower numbers of COVID-19 cases, although infection rates in the north western county of Donegal remain high and people should not travel there.

The changes are being made by regulations laid in the Scottish Parliament today (Thursday) which confirm that travel restrictions remain in place between Scotland and England, Northern Ireland and Wales.

The continued ban on travel to the other three parts of the UK, except for essential reasons, follows this week’s review which found the prevalence of the virus continues to be higher than in Scotland and importation risks remain high.

Transport Secretary Michael Matheson said:

“Travel restrictions, based on the risk of importation of the virus, are key to helping reduce the spread of COVID-19 between countries.  That is why we are introducing a temporary ban on non-essential travel to and from Jersey, as well as maintaining the restrictions on travel with the rest of the UK.

“The Scottish Government’s clinical advisors have carefully considered the potential public health impact, and assessed the risk of importation of COVID-19 from Ireland as a whole to be no longer high. But there remains a specific risk in relation to travel to and from Donegal.

“While our ban is being lifted for travel to and from most of Ireland, clearly the virus and its threat to public health have not gone away.

“Those intent on travelling should be aware that Irish quarantine restrictions will apply to anyone arriving from anywhere in Great Britain, so they should also follow the advice in that country.

“Our firm advice continues to be that non-essential travel – whether domestic or international – should not be undertaken at this time.  We continue to closely monitor the situation across the UK, the Common Travel Area and internationally to help reduce the risk of importing new chains of infection into Scotland.”

Background

People travelling to Ireland from Scotland will need to comply with the restrictions on travel in place in Ireland. Individuals, unless travelling under an exemption, will need to complete a Passenger Locator Form and are requested to restrict their movements for 14 days on arrival in Ireland.

Find further information on the Scottish Government website, including links to guidance from the Governments of Ireland and Jersey.