COVID-19 Update 11 June

Daily Government briefing

Today’s briefing was led by Health Secretary Matt Hancock joined by Baroness Dido Harding, Chair of NHS Improvement. The briefing focussed on the test and trace system and the importance of self-isolating for those who test positive or are exhibiting symptoms. The Q&A covered social distancing at work, child care and coronavirus testing. View the full briefing here.

 

Opportunity to provide insight and analysis on the UK’s economic recovery

As a reported a few days ago, Alok Sharma has announced that he’s setting up five round tables to consider the measures needed to support the UK’s economic recovery from Covid-19. These round tables are: The future of industry; Green Recovery; Backing new businesses; Increasing opportunity; and, How to win and retain more high value internationally mobile investment for the UK. If you would like to provide input on any of the themes being looked at by these round tables, you can do so by email Economic.Recovery@beis.gov.uk The deadline for input is Wednesday 17 June.

 

Guidance published for aviation passengers and operators, inland and coastal boats

The Government has published new guidance for aviation passengers and operators, setting out advice for air travellers and measures that operators should implement to protect against the spread of coronavirus.

The guidance for passengers covers the travel experience step by step, including advice on journey planning, social distancing, cleaning, face coverings, use of PPE and ventilation.

The guidance for operators has been published to help manage risks from coronavirus (COVID-19) and provide safer workplaces and services for workers and passengers.

The UK Government is engaging with a number of key international organisations including the European Civil Aviation Conference (ECAC), the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) on a shared agenda on public health measures for international travel.

New guidance has also been published on using a boat inland or on the coast.

Review the latest guidance for other transport and travel sectors here.

 

Impact of Quarantine

DCMS are keen to hear about the impact of quarantine on your businesses.  I know it sounds obvious but it would be helpful to provide concrete examples of what impact the quarantine is having right now i.e. have you had any clients cancel who were due to arrive in July, August, September citing quarantine as the reason?  if you have – can you send these examples to me and I will pass on.

 

Self-Employment Income Support Scheme datasets updated for June 2020

The tables in this publication show the number of individuals claiming the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) grant by 31 May 2020, and the value of these claims.

 

Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme datasets updated for June 2020

This statistical release provides estimates of the number and value of claims made to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme to HMRC by 31 May 2020. Data is broken down by employer size, sector and geography.

Analysis on potential impact of coronavirus lockdown on household spending

A new analysis looks at the potential impact of the coronavirus lockdown on household spending in the UK. It categorises data from the financial year ending March 2019 according to whether or not spending has been possible under measures in place since 23 March 2020. Spending breakdowns are available by housing tenure, region and age of household reference person.

 

Meeting people from outside your household, other coronavirus outbreak FAQs updated

New guidance has been published advising people how they can see people they do not live with, while maintaining precautions to protect against coronavirus.

Frequently asked questions on what you can and can’t do during the coronavirus outbreak have also been updated to reflect the Prime Minister’s announcements on 10 June 2020.

 

Self Catering COVID Cleaning Protocols

We have received a link to the Self-Catering COVID Cleaning Protocols. These were cleared on Tuesday and are available here.   For information, they will be included in the UKHospitality Guidelines and will be part of the AA and VE COVID Certification schemes that will launch on the 18^th June.

 

IATA Analysis

IATA have published an analysis on the state of the international aviation industry which highlights the severity of the impact that Coronavirus is having on the sector. The main findings are:

• • 2020 will be the worst year in history for airlines (net loss of $84.3bn) and losses will continue in 2021, albeit to a lesser extent.
  • Airlines in all regions are expected to record negative operating income in 2020.
  • Revenues are expected to fall by more than demand as airlines are significantly discounting ticket prices to help stimulate travel.
  • The sharp fall in revenue led to high cash burn due to fixed and semi fixed costs.  Airlines face pressure to reduce operating costs.
  • 32 million jobs supported by aviation (including tourism) are at risk.
  • Restoring air transport connectivity will be critical in the post-COVID period to support the recovery in economic development.

 

EU Border Controls and Iceland

The EU have developed an analysis of the different Border controls in place throughout Europe and the plans each country has for opening up tourism-related travel.

You might also be interested to know what plans Iceland has put in place that allows their tourism to restart on 15^th June while, at the same time, protecting the country from further outbreaks. The main components of the system are:

• • Passengers are required to fill out a pre-registration form before departure to Iceland that includes a declaration on their health and information on countries they have visited before arrival
  • Passengers can choose to be tested by a PCR-test for COVID-19 on arrival in Iceland or self-quarantine for two weeks
  • Passengers will receive their test results within 24 hours
  • If the passenger tests positive they must self-isolate
  • If the passenger does not have access to a suitable location to self- isolate, they will be given accommodation at a specialised isolation centre at no cost to them

 

Code for Tour Guiding

The professional guiding industry has developed a code of conduct that will cover their tour activities and help ensure customers under their care. Guides who are members of the Institute of Tourist Guiding, the British Guild of Tourist Guides, the Association of Professional Tourist Guides and the Driver-Guides Association have come together to agree this code to which all members of these associations will adhere.

 

Industry updates

• Heathrow Airport will continue to lay off employees after passenger levels hit an all-time low in May, down 97% over the same time last year.
• Etihad Airways has launched a Travel Voucher programme: customers who purchase a voucher between 10-24 June can use it to book travel in the next two years, and will receive an additional 50% cash value for future travel after 1 August 2020.
• Air Transat plans to resume international flights from 23 July, including routes from Toronto to London, Manchester and Glasgow.

 

Situation update 11 June 2020

• To see the number of cases of COVID-19 in England and the UK visit the UK COVID-19 dashboard – https://coronavirus.data.gov.uk/
• To see the number of cases globally see the World Health Organisation dashboard – https://covid19.who.int/