Boris Johnson is expected to unveil a traffic light system determining which countries Brits can visit this summer as lockdown restrictions begin to ease.

Later today (Monday, April 5) the PM is due to address the nation on the rules surrounding travelling abroad.

Under the current lockdown restrictions, holidays abroad are illegal until May 17 when it is expected a traffic light system will come into force. This system will dictate which areas of the world are safe for overseas leisure travel.

It will be based on a range of factors - including the number of people vaccinated in the country, rates of infection, emerging new variants and the country's access to reliable scientific data and genomic sequencing, reports The Mirror.

In the UK over five million people have now received their second dose of the coronavirus jab, and for the first time in a very long time, the future looks somewhat bright.

In Europe and in other parts of the world, the situation is not nearly as bright as it is in the UK.

A third wave of coronavirus is leading to a rise in Covid-19 deaths and infections across mainland Europe, and lockdown restrictions are returning in places like France and Germany.

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The first thought is that if vaccination levels are high enough in the UK, then overseas travel shouldn't be a worry. But, the existence of potentially vaccine-resistant Covid-19 variants is posing an incredibly worrying threat.

If some strains of the virus can bypass vaccinations and lead to widespread variants in the UK, then all of the country's hard work may have been for nothing.

That's why the government have established the Global Travel Task Force, who are set to deliver a full report on the current travel possibility by April 12.

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In that report, it's expected that the government will be encouraged to adopt a 'traffic light system'.

It is understood that travellers arriving from countries rated "green" will not be required to isolate - although three pre-departure and post-arrival tests will still be needed.

For areas classed as "amber", the restrictions could remain as they are with arrivals required to isolate for ten days on return to the UK and carry out the same testing regime as for "green" countries. People able to pay extra can pay to have a third test, cutting isolation time.


Sources say that the Prime Minister is still confident that some overseas travel could begin from May 17, but any permitted travel is likely to require quarantining in hotels.

Currently, the UK government have a 'red list' of countries, where travel into the UK is completely banned for non-British and non-Irish citizens. To view that list, click here.

Do you think the traffic light system is a good idea? Tell us in the comments below.