Growing fears the Czech Republic could be added to the quarantine travel list after case numbers edge closer to UK's 'red list' threshold as Switzerland also appears destined to be slapped with travel ban

  • The UK Government has set threshold at 20 cases per 100,000 for quarantine 
  • Czech Republic currently has a seven-day rate of 19.4 cases per 100,000 people
  • Meanwhile, Switzerland is already over threshold at some 21.2 per 100,000 

The Czech Republic could soon become the latest country to be added to the UK's quarantine travel 'red list' after coronavirus case numbers increased. 

The UK Government has said that any country which records more than 20 Covid-19 cases per 100,000 people in a seven-day period will be subject to a travel ban. 

The latest statistics show the seven-day rate in the Czech Republic is now at 19.4 cases per 100,000, up from 16 a week ago and only just below the threshold. 

Meanwhile, Switzerland appears almost certain to be added to the 'red list' because its case numbers are currently above the threshold, with a seven-day rate of 21.2. 

Scotland has already taken Switzerland off of its safe travel list and the UK Government is widely expected to follow suit by the end of this week.  

Coronavirus case numbers are rising in the Czech Republic, sparking speculation the country will be added to the UK's quarantine travel list. A bar is pictured in Prague on August 5

Coronavirus case numbers are rising in the Czech Republic, sparking speculation the country will be added to the UK's quarantine travel list. A bar is pictured in Prague on August 5

In full: The countries which are not on the UK's quarantine list

The Government has imposed quarantine restrictions on numerous countries in recent weeks. 

Below is the latest list of nations which are still viewed by the UK as safe to travel:   

Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Barbados, Bermuda, Bonaire, St Eustatius and Saba, British Virgin Islands, Brunei, Cayman Islands, the ChannelIslands, Curaçao, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominica, Estonia, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Fiji, Finland, French Polynesia, Gibraltar, Germany, Greece, Greenland, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, the Isle of Man, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Macao, Malaysia, Mauritius, Montserrat, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Norway, Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands, Poland, Portugal, San Marino, Seychelles, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, St Barthélemy, St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Pierre and Miquelon, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Switzerland, Taiwan, Turkey, Vatican City State, Vietnam.

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However, while Switzerland and potentially the Czech Republic could soon be subject to the 14-day self-isolation requirement for travellers returning to the UK, Greece and Italy now appear likely to stay on the safe list for the moment.    

While the rate has ticked upwards in both countries, neither of them are near the UK's threshold for banning non-essential travel. 

In Greece, the latest seven-day rate is 14.1 cases per 100,000 - roughly the same as a week ago (14.3), but up from where it was two weeks ago (10.1).

Italy is currently recording a seven-day rate of 10.8, up from 5.6.

The figures were calculated based on data collected by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.

In Ireland, the seven-day rate is currently 14.8, while in the UK it is 11.1.

Last week the Government announced that Croatia, Austria and Trinidad & Tobago were being added to the 'red list'. 

Announcements on travel restrictions have tended to be made my ministers towards the end of the week, with new measures coming into effect on weekends.  

The latest statistics came as Boris Johnson continued to face pressure to scrap the blanket quarantine policy.

The Future of Aviation Group, which includes 40 Tory MPs, has written to the PM urging him to end the current self-isolation requirement for people entering the UK from high risk countries. 

They believe testing on arrival at airports would enable the quarantine period to be slashed to less than a week. 

They have warned the current approach is harming businesses, telling the PM: 'Without testing, we risk not only limiting leisure travel but also damaging our aspirations for a truly global Britain.' 

More than 30 countries across the world already conduct testing at airports and MPs want to know why the UK cannot follow suit.