The High Court has ruled that the UK government did not act unlawfully with regards to its traffic light travel system.
Manchester Airport Group (MAG) led the court challenge against the government, and was supported by Ryanair, BA owner IAG, TUI, Easyjet and Virgin Atlantic. The airlines demanded more transparency about the decision-making process regarding the colour-coded system.
According to Reuters, the court accepted part of the argument against the government, but concluded that the government does not need to divulge more information on how it reaches its decisions regarding the red, amber and green lists.
This comes after the government recently announced that France would be classed in a new ‘amber plus’ category, meaning that those returning from the country will have to quarantine for ten days regardless of their vaccination status. The group of airlines described the move as “shambolic” and stated that the government “should do the right thing by consumers and provide clarity on any changes it makes to the system”.
The group of airlines involved in the case have issued a joint statement in response to the outcome:
“British businesses and consumers deserve to understand how the Government takes decisions on the traffic light system so that they can book their travel with confidence whether for business, visiting friends and family or simply taking a holiday. The way decisions have been taken to date has not been transparent and has created huge confusion and uncertainty for the British public. In a recent poll 80 per cent of UK consumers agreed.”
The statement also urged the government to add the US and major European countries to the ‘green list’ and remove quarantine and testing requirements as soon as possible.
“The UK has already fallen behind the EU’s reopening and our overly cautious approach to international travel will further impact our economic recovery,” the group added.
Earlier today Easyjet published a new study which revealed that the majority of Brits have found government travel advice confusing over the past 18 months.
Easyjet: majority of Brits find government travel advice confusing
