Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has warned he “cannot rule out” more countries being added to the UK’s quarantine list, as concerns are raised about coronavirus case rises across Europe.
The government is expected to discuss the “growing concern” around coronavirus in Belgium and Luxembourg while it closely monitors the situation in Croatia after imposing quarantines on returnees from Spain.
Mr Shapps told reporters on his return to the UK from Spain that the decision to impose quarantines was the “right thing to do”, pointing out how Spain had experienced its “highest [rise in cases] since the peak in March”.
The transport secretary, who confirmed he will self-isolate for two weeks after arriving home, explained how he was forced to act swiftly on Spain, with a huge jump in cases between Friday and Saturday.
He said: “We absolutely have to act the moment we get the information and that’s exactly what happened with Spain as we saw and as we’ve seen over the weekend where there was over 6,100 cases – the highest since the peak in March over there.
“It was the right thing to do and it’s why the whole of the UK did (it) at the same time.
“I can’t therefore rule out other countries having to go into the quarantine as well.”
This week Boris Johnson warned there are “signs of a second wave” in parts of the continent.
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Western Europe. It is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to the southwest, and the North Sea to the northwest.
It covers an area of 30,689 km2 (11,849 sq mi) and has a population of more than 11.5 million, making it the 22nd most densely populated country in the world and the 6th most densely populated country in Europe, with a density of 376 per square kilometre (970/sq mi). The capital and largest city is Brussels; other major cities are Antwerp, Ghent, Charleroi, Liège, Bruges, Namur, and Leuven.
Legally, Belgium is a sovereign state and a federal constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system. Its institutional organization is complex and is structured on both regional and linguistic grounds. It is divided into three highly autonomous regions: the Flemish Region in the north, Wallonia in the south, and the Brussels-Capital Region.
Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe on the Adriatic Sea.
Croatia was first internationally recognized as an independent state on 7 June 879 during the reign of Duke Branimir. On 25 June 1991, Croatia declared independence and the Croatian War of Independence was fought for four years following the declaration.
A sovereign state, Croatia is a republic governed under a parliamentary system. It is a member of the European Union, the United Nations, the Council of Europe, NATO, and the World Trade Organization and is a founding member of the Union for the Mediterranean.
Croatia is classified by the World Bank as a high-income economy. Croatia provides social security, universal health care, and tuition-free primary and secondary education.
Grant Shapps is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Transport since 2019. Shapps also has Cabinet responsibility for the Northern Powerhouse. A member of the Conservative Party, he has been the Member of Parliament for Welwyn Hatfield since the 2005 general election.
ITV (LSE: ITV) is a broadcasting company which was formed from a merger of Granada plc and Carlton Communications in 2004. It holds Channel 3 broadcasting licences in England, Wales, Southern Scotland and the Isle of Man.
Luxembourg is a small European country, surrounded by Belgium, France and Germany. It’s mostly rural, with dense Ardennes forest and nature parks in the north, rocky gorges of the Mullerthal region in the east and the Moselle river valley in the southeast. Its capital, Luxembourg City, is famed for its fortified medieval old town perched on sheer cliffs.
Spain, a country on Europe’s Iberian Peninsula, includes 17 autonomous regions with diverse geography and cultures. Capital city Madrid is home to the Royal Palace and Prado museum, housing works by European masters. Segovia has a medieval castle (the Alcázar) and an intact Roman aqueduct. Catalonia’s capital, Barcelona, is defined by Antoni Gaudí’s whimsical modernist landmarks like the Sagrada Família church.