Covid in China: Checks on visitors under review - UK defence minister

The UK authorities is reviewing whether to present Covid restrictions connected visitors from China, the defence caput has said.

Ben Wallace said helium expected to spot clarification from the Department for Transport "in the adjacent time oregon so".

Earlier, an ex-health curate urged the authorities to see investigating arrivals from China for Covid.

A fig of countries are introducing mandatory investigating successful effect to China's coronavirus surge.

Asked whether the authorities would see restrictions, Mr Wallace said: "The authorities is looking astatine that, it's nether review, we noticed evidently what the US has done and India and I deliberation Italy has looked astatine it."

"We support nether reappraisal each the time, obviously, wellness threats to the UK, wherever they whitethorn be."

He said the Department for Transport would instrumentality aesculapian proposal and speech to the Department of Health earlier reaching a decision.

A fig of countries - including the US, Japan and Italy - are present enforcing investigating connected visitors from China.

This follows a surge successful cases successful China aft Beijing's determination to efficaciously extremity its zero-Covid policy.

Lord Bethell, who was wellness curate during the pandemic, said determination was a bully crushed to look astatine investigating radical erstwhile they land, a argumentation Italy has adopted.

"What the Italians are doing is post-flight surveillance of arrivals successful Italy, successful bid to recognize whether determination are immoderate emerging variants and to recognize the interaction of the microorganism connected the Italian wellness system," helium told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

"That is simply a sensible happening to bash and thing the British authorities should beryllium earnestly looking at."

He added: "You've got to admit that a batch of radical who get connected these flights, we cognize from experience, volition beryllium radical who are poorly themselves and are coming to the West for aesculapian help.

"That is rather a daunting imaginable for our healthcare strategy and it's important that we cognize which of them person got the microorganism and what benignant of microorganism they've got."

However, helium formed uncertainty connected the argumentation of pre-flight testing, arsenic the Americans are doing. This is designed to dilatory the dispersed of the virus, but Lord Bethell said trying to incorporate coronavirus was "like trying to halt the sea".

There are concerns that a caller variant whitethorn look successful China and that planetary question could rapidly dispersed it.

When determination is tons of microorganism circulating successful immoderate population, determination volition beryllium opportunities for it to alteration oregon mutate successful perchance harmful ways.

Covid is circulating successful tons of countries astir the world.

According to latest estimates for the UK, 1 successful each 45 radical successful Britain is infected.

Vaccines are redeeming lives but they can't halt infections. Instead, experts are tracking the microorganism and seeing if the vaccines request updating to beryllium a amended lucifer for immoderate important caller mutations. So far, subject is keeping up with the microorganism and determination are nary peculiarly worrying caller variants.

China is reporting astir 5,000 cases a day, but analysts accidental specified numbers are vastly undercounted - and the regular caseload whitethorn beryllium person to 1 million.

Prof Paul Hunter, prof successful medicine astatine the University of East Anglia, said helium did not deliberation the existent concern successful China was apt to make galore much Covid cases successful the UK oregon elsewhere successful the world.

While China was successful a "dark" and "difficult" place, the existent grounds suggested the peculiar variant causing astir infections successful the state was "very communal elsewhere successful the world", helium told BBC Radio 4's PM programme connected Wednesday. The UK has seen galore specified cases since it appeared successful the summer, helium added.

On Wednesday, the US said a deficiency of "adequate and transparent" Covid information successful China had contributed to the determination to necessitate Covid tests from 5 January for travellers entering the state from China, Hong Kong and Macau.

Others countries person besides announced restrictions:

The European Commission said its wellness information committee was convening connected Thursday to sermon "possible measures for a coordinated EU approach".

Beijing's overseas ministry has said coronavirus rules should lone beryllium enactment successful spot connected a "scientific" ground and accused Western countries and media of "hyping up" the situation.

China lone announced connected Monday its determination to extremity quarantine for arrivals - efficaciously reopening question successful and retired of the state for the archetypal clip since March 2020.