Mediterranean holiday destinations risk becoming 'melting pots' for coronavirus, expert warns

‘I wouldn’t be surprised if we did see some really big flare-ups,’ says member of Independent Sage group

Britain’s favourite holiday destinations could become “melting pots” for coronavirus once the 14-day travel quarantine is lifted, a public health expert has warned.

Professor Gabriel Scally, a member of the Independent Sage group, said he would not be surprised to see “some really big flare ups” in tourist resorts around the world over the next two months.

The UK government has confirmed the 14-day self-isolation period would be lifted in England for arrivals from 59 ”low-risk” countries including France, Spain, Italy and Greece from 10 July. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have not yet agreed to lift their own quarantines but are likely to follow suit.

However Prof Scally, who is based at the University of Bristol, said: “As Europe loosens up and people do go for their Mediterranean holiday, I really worry about some of the places they are going on holiday becoming melting pots for the virus, as people fly in from all sorts of different places and enjoy themselves and alcohol will undoubtedly feature.

“So I wouldn’t at all be surprised if over the next month or two, we did see some really big flare-ups in some holiday destinations.”

Travellers may also end up being trapped abroad in a lockdown or compulsory quarantine if there is a spike in cases, Professor Scally added.

He said: “My personal feeling is we should forego foreign holidays. One of the best things we could do is to spend our pounds and euros in the UK and Ireland, support the domestic tourist industry and keep jobs alive in this country.”

Professor Anthony Costello, Director of the Institute for Global Health at the University College London, said the risk would increase depending on the number of people you meet while travelling and on holiday, how often you meet and how close you sit in an enclosed space.

“So being in an airport being in a plane, being in hotels wherever you are staying abroad, all slightly increase your risk,” he added.

“Having said that, we have got the highest rates in Europe, so assuming you are flying to Europe the risk is going to be slightly less.”

Professor Martin McKee, professor of European public health at London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, agreed that the risk would increase as a result of sitting next to a lot of people for a long period but said there was evidence that air conditioning and air circulation on flights helped reduce the possibility of the virus spreading.

The experts spoke at an online press conference shortly before the Department for Transport published its full list of countries and territories exempt from the quarantine.

A spokesperson for the DfT said that the list would be “kept under constant review, so that if the health risks increase self-isolation measures can be re-introduced to help stop the spread of the disease into England.”

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s advice to British citizens to avoid all non-essential travel has also been lifted for the same countries and territories.

“These countries have been assessed as no longer presenting an unacceptably high risk to British people travelling abroad,” a spokesperson said. “Travel advice is based on risks to British nationals, including in-country public health assessments.”

Deenan Pillay, a professor of virology at University College London, said UK tourists should also be aware of the risk to local residents when travelling and respect those countries such as Greece which still have a ban on travel from the UK.

He said: “I think we have got to be respectful of those countries that have made huge efforts and been more successful in controlling the pandemic than we have.”