-
Quarantine hotel users in England face £1,200 bill for positive Covid test

Red list’ arrivals will run up charges to extend stay if they test positive, on top of £1,750 initial fee
Travellers in quarantine hotels in England face an additional bill of up to £1,200 if they test positive for coronavirus during their stay, the government has revealed.
British and Irish nationals or UK residents who have been in so-called red list countries in the previous 10 days are required to book a 10-day quarantine package costing £1,750 per adult, as the government seeks to limit the spread of new and potentially more dangerous coronavirus variants arriving from abroad.
Information published on the government’s website on Monday revealed the additional cost to the traveller if they test positive: £152 a day.
Guests are allowed to leave after 11 nights if they receive negative results from tests taken on day two and day eight of their isolation.
A positive result from the first test will extend a traveller’s stay by two nights at a cost of £304. If the second test returns a positive reading, the guest must remain in their room for an additional eight nights and pay £1,216.
The prime minister, Boris Johnson, was asked at a Downing Street press conference on Monday what would happen if a traveller cannot afford the extra fee.
He replied: “It is currently illegal to travel abroad for holidays anyway. We would expect people who are coming in from one of these red list countries to be able to cover their costs.”
There are 33 countries on the government’s “red list”, which includes Portugal, the United Arab Emirates, South America and southern Africa.
Scotland is extending the requirement to cover arrivals from any country unless they have travelled from the common travel area (CTA), which includes the UK and Ireland.
Border staff received guidelines on how to implement England’s new “red list” quarantine rules in an email just hours before they came into force in a rollout that one worker described as “an absolute joke”.
Border Force sources told the Guardian that all immigration control staff had received a lengthy email with five attachments, detailing official guidance for carrying out the new checks at the border, at 9.25pm on Sunday.
There are five airports in England at which red list arrivals can land, with the vast majority coming to London Heathrow. Gatwick, Birmingham and London City airports have all said the numbers are likely to be low. Farnborough in Hampshire is also taking arrivals on private jets used for business travel.
Officials have secured 4,963 rooms at 16 hotels, with more than 50,000 extra rooms on standby amid uncertainty about the number of arrivals from red list countries.
source: Jamie Grierson
Levant
You May Also Like
Popular Posts
Caricature
BENEFIT Sponsors BuildHer...
- April 23, 2025
BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, has sponsored the BuildHer CityHack 2025 Hackathon, a two-day event spearheaded by the College of Engineering and Technology at the Royal University for Women (RUW).
Aimed at secondary school students, the event brought together a distinguished group of academic professionals and technology experts to mentor and inspire young participants.
More than 100 high school students from across the Kingdom of Bahrain took part in the hackathon, which featured an intensive programme of training workshops and hands-on sessions. These activities were tailored to enhance participants’ critical thinking, collaborative problem-solving, and team-building capabilities, while also encouraging the development of practical and sustainable solutions to contemporary challenges using modern technological tools.
BENEFIT’s Chief Executive Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi, commented: “Our support for this educational hackathon reflects our long-term strategic vision to nurture the talents of emerging national youth and empower the next generation of accomplished female leaders in technology. By fostering creativity and innovation, we aim to contribute meaningfully to Bahrain’s comprehensive development goals and align with the aspirations outlined in the Kingdom’s Vision 2030—an ambition in which BENEFIT plays a central role.”
Professor Riyadh Yousif Hamzah, President of the Royal University for Women, commented: “This initiative reflects our commitment to advancing women in STEM fields. We're cultivating a generation of creative, solution-driven female leaders who will drive national development. Our partnership with BENEFIT exemplifies the powerful synergy between academia and private sector in supporting educational innovation.”
Hanan Abdulla Hasan, Senior Manager, PR & Communication at BENEFIT, said: “We are honoured to collaborate with RUW in supporting this remarkable technology-focused event. It highlights our commitment to social responsibility, and our ongoing efforts to enhance the digital and innovation capabilities of young Bahraini women and foster their ability to harness technological tools in the service of a smarter, more sustainable future.”
For his part, Dr. Humam ElAgha, Acting Dean of the College of Engineering and Technology at the University, said: “BuildHer CityHack 2025 embodies our hands-on approach to education. By tackling real-world problems through creative thinking and sustainable solutions, we're preparing women to thrive in the knowledge economy – a cornerstone of the University's vision.”
opinion
Report
ads
Newsletter
Subscribe to our mailing list to get the new updates!