Covid infection rates soar in Mediterranean nations as they prepare to welcome British tourists

Exclusive: ‘If lateral flow tests are good enough to get our schools reopened, then they should be good enough to get our borders reopened’ – Paul Charles, The PC Agency

Distant dream: Valletta in Malta (Simon Calder)

As nations across Europe compete for attention from prospective British holidaymakers, infection rates in many popular tourist destinations are soaring.

Cyprus, whose deputy tourism minister last week said the country would open up for vaccinated British visitors as early as April, has seen new coronavirus infection rates increase in a week by around half. 

With 244 new cases per 100,000 people over the past week, the island has four times the rate in the UK – currently standing at 62.

Italy, which is set to impose an Easter lockdown, is just behind the rate in Cyprus, with 238 new cases per 100,000 citizens in the last seven days.

Greece, which previously had kept infections low, has also seen a sharp increase, and currently stands at 131 – almost twice the rate in Britain.

All are performing better than Malta, which has a rate six times’ worse than the UK: 377 new cases per 100,000 people.

The figures were compiled by travel consultancy The PC Agency. Its chief executive, Paul Charles, said: “The chart’s now telling two very different stories – a clear disparity between those governments which have got a grip on their Covid situation and those who haven’t.

“Spain and Portugal are seeing their infection rates drop quite sharply, like the UK, but without a widespread vaccine programme.

“But then you’re also seeing the likes of Greece and Cyprus with much higher rates, ironically in the same week when they’ve both said they will open up to UK visitors from May.”

Two of the best-performing countries, Portugal and South Africa, are on the British government’s red list – which involves a ban on direct passenger flights and mandatory 11-night quarantine.

Portugal has a rate one-seventh lower than the UK, while South Africa’s is almost four-fifths lower.

They are regarded as potential sources of new variants of Covid-19.

All foreign holidays from the UK are currently illegal and are expected to remain so until 17 May at the earliest.

Mr Charles said: “I’m very confident that you will still be able to travel from 17 May to some countries, with a mix of digital vaccination certificates and/or negative test proof.

“If lateral flow tests are good enough to get our schools reopened, then they should be good enough to get our borders reopened. Greater testing has been successful at rooting out variants.

“I think we’ll see an ‘international travel roadmap within a roadmap,’ already laid out by the prime minister – with phased re-opening from 17 May and then again from 21 June.

“After that, many destinations will be open to all, including the US which I’ve always predicted will be open for 1 July.”

Visitors from the UK to the US have been banned since 14 March 2020, when President Trump said they would threaten “the security of our transportation system and infrastructure and the national security”.