The U.S Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have issued the highest warning on UK travel due to concerns over the spread of the Delta variant in the territory.
This means that according to the U.S. government, even fully-vaccinated travelers would be at risk if visiting the United Kingdom, including England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
“There are restrictions in place affecting U.S. citizen entry into the United Kingdom,” the advisory reads. “Your risk of contracting COVID-19 and developing severe symptoms may be lower if you are fully vaccinated with an FDA authorized vaccine […] because of the current situation in the United Kingdom, even fully vaccinated travelers may be at risk for getting and spreading COVID-19 variants.”
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), COVID-19 cases in the UK have climbed from around 3,000 at the beginning of June to almost 50,000 as of today, the highest rate of infection in 2021.
This travel alert and the current coronavirus caseload appear as new deterrents to the long-awaited U.S.-UK travel corridor.
At the end of June, officials from both countries told the Financial Times that the possibility of signing an agreement in July and even August was increasingly unlikely due to multiple issues.
The complexities of the U.S. Political system, the “status” of the AstraZeneca vaccine in the States and a growing concern about the steady increase in cases linked to the highly-contagious Delta variant, were mentioned among the obstacles both teams had encountered.
With almost its entire adult population fully vaccinated, Sir Patrick Vallance, the UK’s chief scientific adviser has announced that 40% of hospitalized Britons are fully vaccinated.
However, he also said that it should not set off alarm bells since the death rate is significantly lower than it was in summer 2020.
On July 19, the UK government decided not to vaccinate people under 18s without underlying health conditions until more data is available.