Jamaica and UK set to resume air travel
Jamaica’s borders are set to reopen to the United Kingdom tomorrow (May 1) with the expiry of the travel ban today.
Prime Minister Andrew Holness had previously disclosed that he would not extend the ban beyond it’s current timeline.
For tourism interests, it provides a welcome boost to a sector trying to rebound from the crippling COVID-19 pandemic.
Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett disclosed that the reopening “will enable the critical gateways of Heathrow and Gatwick airports to have transit for passengers coming through and who are full compliant with health and safety protocols required for international travel”.
Prior to the pandemic, the UK offered a steady stream of travellers into the island coming just behind North America in the number of people visiting.
However, while this news comes forward, there is still a level of wariness on the part of the authorities. The Health Ministry is said to planning a meeting to look at potential issues with the reopening.
One of the issues is that if the variant strains of COVID-19 that seemingly originated in the UK. The minister has noted that the variant may be responsible for the latest surge of virus cases in the island.