Coronavirus: Scotland to reimpose quarantine restrictions for travellers returning from Spain - Nicola Sturgeon

Travellers returning to Scotland from Spain will have to quarantine for 14 days from midnight.
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First Minister Nicola Sturgeon made the announcement on twitter today after the BBC reported that England would be reimposing quarantine restrictions from Sunday. This decision has also been taken by devolved administrations in Northern Ireland and Wales.

Spain has been hit with a fresh Covid-19 outbreak with a spike in cases in cities like Barcelona, Madrid and Zaragoza since the country ended its lockdown.

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In a tweet published on Saturday afternoon, Ms Sturgeon wrote: "Having reviewed the latest data earlier today, @scotgov is also reimposing 14 day quarantine for travellers returning from Spain.

"This reinforces the point that these matters are subject to change at short notice & so my advice is to be cautious about non essential foreign travel."

The Scottish Government says the public health measures will come into effect from midnight on Sunday, July 26.

The decision means people returning to Scotland from Spain will have to self-isolate for two weeks.

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It comes after the Scottish Government only recently lifted quarantine measures for people returning from Spain.

Nicola Sturgeon tweeted that quarantine would be reimposed for travellers returning to Scotland from Spain.Nicola Sturgeon tweeted that quarantine would be reimposed for travellers returning to Scotland from Spain.
Nicola Sturgeon tweeted that quarantine would be reimposed for travellers returning to Scotland from Spain.

But the First Minister has repeatedly warned that the situation would be subject to change and urged the public to be cautious with non-essential travel, given the volatility of Covid-19 infection rates.

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.

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

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