New quarantine rules for travellers from Greece

People arriving in Scotland from Greece and parts of Cyprus must quarantine for 14 days from Saturday.

The country has been redesignated for quarantine, except for the islands of Crete, Corfu, Rhodes and Zante, while those entering Scotland from the Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia in Cyprus must also quarantine for two weeks.

The new rules are being put in place due to a significant increase in cases of coronavirus in those areas.

At the same time Bahrain, Cambodia, Chile, Iceland, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Turks and Caicos Islands and Laos are being added to the list of destinations exempt from quarantine on arrival in Scotland.

The current additional restrictions in relation to Denmark are to remain in place for a further 14 days, but will be reviewed when new information becomes available on progress by the Danish authorities to contain the outbreak. 

Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf said: “It is imperative that we disrupt the spread of this virus which remains a significant challenge in Scotland and across the world.

“Our first line of defence in managing the risk of imported cases from communities with high risks of transmission is imposing quarantine restrictions.

“Over the coming week we will be closely monitoring the situation in the Greek and Spanish islands, in particular the Canary Islands, as the number of cases there are giving cause for concern.

“The addition of nine destinations to the list of countries designated exempt from quarantine requirements, should not be taken as a signal that people should travel abroad.

“Our message remains clear that people should think very hard before committing to non-essential foreign travel as the public health situation, and therefore our response to it, can change rapidly.”

The new regulations come into force at 4am on Saturday.