Pre departure Covid tests required for travel to Scotland

All people travelling to Scotland from abroad will need to take pre-departure Covid tests to help stem the spread of the Omicron variant, the Scottish Government has announced.

All people travelling to Scotland from abroad will need to take pre-departure Covid tests to help stem the spread of the Omicron variant, the Scottish Government has announced.

From 4am on Tuesday, international travellers will have to provide a negative pre-departure test taken two days before travelling, in addition to a negative PCR test on or before day two after arrival, under measures agreed on a four-nation basis.

Nigeria has also been added to the red list for international travel from 4am on Monday December 6, meaning all travellers returning to Scotland from there will be required to quarantine on their arrival in managed accommodation for 10 days.

Pre-departure tests are currently only required for people arriving from places on the red list and unvaccinated travellers from all countries of origin.

The Scottish Government said the changes were informed by a UK Health Security Agency risk assessment.

Scotland’s Transport Secretary Michael Matheson said: “It is essential we take steps now to keep people safe, protect the rollout of the booster programme and reduce the chances of unsustainable pressure being placed on the NHS over the winter.

“We have always said it may be necessary to quickly implement fresh measures to protect public health in Scotland, particularly with regards to international travel, and these restrictions are proportionate and necessary to that aim.

“We fully understand the impact the changes will have on staff and businesses in the travel and aviation sectors, particularly as the new variant came at a time when we were beginning to see some signs of recovery. We will not keep the restrictions in place any longer than is necessary.”

The countries currently on the red list are Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Published: 04/12/2021 by Radio NewsHub