The authorities in Italy, Belgium, Germany, South Africa, and the Netherlands have over the weekend chosen to stop all air traffic from the UK. This has happened as a result of a mutated version of the coronavirus spreading rapidly in the country.
A number of other countries, including Denmark and Austria, are considering how to handle the situation.
The new and reportedly more contagious version of the coronavirus has been named N501Y. According to preliminary analyzes, it can be up to 70% more contagious than other known versions of the virus.
At a press conference on Saturday, the British government stated that a large number of cases of new mutations have been found, which are now estimated to account for over 60% of new infections in London, which has led the British authorities to tighten restrictions further.
The mutated version is “out of control,” said British Health Minister Matt Hancock.
It has not yet been proven that the new variant makes the infected more ill, nor are there any data indicating that the new virus strain is resistant to vaccines.