Travellers from Spain to face quarantine rules

Spain will be removed from the list of countries exempt from quarantine requirements due to an increased number of cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) in the last few days.

The decision, also made by the devolved administrations in Northern Ireland and Wales as well as the UK Government, has been made to reduce the risk of the transmission of the virus by those travelling from Spain and arriving in Scotland.

The public health measures will come into effect from midnight 26 July and will mean those arriving in Scotland from Spain will be required to quarantine for 14 days.

Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf said:

“The decision to exempt Spain earlier this week, was taken when the data showed there was an improvement in the spread of the virus. But clearly the latest data has given us cause for concern to overturn that decision.

“We appreciate that this will be disappointing. However, we have always been clear we are closely monitoring the pandemic situation in all countries and that we may require to remove a country from the list of places exempt from quarantine requirements should the virus show a resurgence.

“It is still active and it is still deadly. Supressing the virus, preventing it from being transmitted and protecting public health is our priority.”