All travelers arriving in the United Kingdom will be subjected to a mandatory 14-day quarantine, UK home secretary confirmed on Wednesday. Anyone failing to comply with the mandatory conditions may face enforcement action and a breach of self-isolation would be punishable with a £1,000 ($1,259) fine or potential prosecution. Making a statement in the House of Commons, Priti Patel said the UK is past the peak of coronavirus but the country is "now more vulnerable to new infections being brought in from abroad". "We are in a national health emergency right now. This isn't about the inconvenience of certain regulations and measures — we are here to make sure we protect public health first and foremost," Patel told the lawmakers. The new measures will come into force from June 8 and require arrivals to self-isolate for 14 days, the home secretary confirmed. Under the new rules, all arrivals except a short list of exemptions will be required to complete an online locator form to supply contact details, travel details and the address of where they will self-isolate for 14 days. "Protecting the public's health and avoiding a second peak that overwhelms the NHS (National Health Service) will always be our top priority," said Patel. "As we get the virus under control here, we must manage the risk of cases being imported from abroad. We owe it to the thousands who've lost their lives not to throw away our progress," she said. The UK's Border Force will undertake checks at the border and may refuse entry to any non-resident foreign nationals who refuse to comply with these regulations. — Agencies
