A growing number of EU countries moved over the weekend to halt travel from the UK after a sharp rise in coronavirus cases, caused in part by a more infectious new strain.
Germany, Italy and the Netherlands announced on Sunday the suspension of flights from the UK while Belgium banned air and rail travel. France said it was halting the entry of all passengers from the UK and suspending the movement of goods from the UK for 48 hours. The first patient in Italy tested positive for the new variant on Sunday night.
The pound fell 1.2 per cent to $1.3360 on Monday morning in Asia following the developments.
Germany, which holds the EU presidency until the end of this month, has called an emergency meeting of the bloc’s representatives for Monday to discuss a co-ordinated response to the new strain. Boris Johnson has also summoned an urgent Cobra meeting the same day to discuss the flow of freight into the UK.
The crisis has capped a bad year for Britain’s prime minister after he announced tough restrictions to stop households in much of south-east England from mixing over Christmas. Britain’s government is badly behind the curve, writes our editorial board.
Trade bodies, meanwhile, issued pleas for further financial relief to help non-essential retail, leisure and entertainment businesses to cope with a shutdown. (FT)
Coronavirus digest
Corporate support for pandemic-struck companies needs to become more targeted, writes Raghuram Rajan. Andrew Hill makes the case for using the past as a guide out of the pandemic.
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In the news
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