UK drops advice against non-urgent travel to 32 destinations

LONDON: Britain dropped its advice against all but essential travel for 32 countries and territories on Wednesday as it continued to simplify its coronavirus travel regime after progress in fighting COVID-19 across the world.

The change will allow people to travel more easily to destinations such as Algeria, Malaysia and Senegal as many travel insurance firms exclude cover for places where the government advises against travel, the foreign ministry said.

Britain recently replaced its so-called traffic light system with a single red list and has reduced testing requirements for fully vaccinated travellers.

The government is still advising against all but essential travel for scores of countries and territories on its red list which include Brazil, Mexico, South Africa and Thailand.

"We're striking the right balance between keeping people safe which remains our priority and giving them the freedom to exercise personal responsibility, while supporting the travel sector," foreign minister Liz Truss said.