The government has announced that all legal Covid social distancing and mask-wearing restrictions will be dropped from 19 July in England, the so-called Freedom Day, asking instead for Britons to use their own judgement when it comes to evaluating the risk of the disease.

These changes apply to England and relate to activities within its borders.

But what about international travel? The sector has had a very rocky start since it tentatively reopened on 17 May, allowing holidays to a slim list of “safe” countries alongside onerous restrictions such as pre- and post-departure testing.

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With concerns over rising infections in the Balearics - currently sitting on the UK’s “green watchlist” - what are the rules for travelling to Spain this summer?

Here’s everything you need to know:

Sajid Javid, the new health secretary, has told the House of Commons those who have received both doses of the vaccine will not have to self-isolate if they are a close contact of a new positive case of Covid from next month.

At present, if you are told by NHS Test and Trace you are a close contact of someone who has tested positive for Covid you must enter 10 days of self-isolation, even if you have had both your jabs.

But from 16 August, Mr Javid announced, the rules will change so that those who are fully vaccinated can continue their lives as normal even if they are logged as a close contact.

But when will this apply to arrivals from amber countries?

On Monday, Boris Johnson said the transport secretary would lay out further details this week to exempt those that have been fully vaccinated from self-isolation on arrival back into the UK. It’s thought that the change would take place from August.

Meanwhile, while Germany is relaxing restrictions for vaccinated Britons, other countries are imposing more curbs.

Yesterday, Cyprus added the UK to its own “red list”.

The move means that, while British travellers are still permitted to enter the country quarantine-free, they must submit to another PCR test on arrival, in addition to one 72 hours prior to departure.

The second test must be paid for by the traveller; it costs €30 at Larnaca airport and €32 at Paphos airport, and the results are available within three hours on the digital platform covid-testcyprus.com.

Helen Coffey has the full story here:

While England will lift the legal mask requirement from 19 July, the prime minister announced on Monday, some public transport operators have indicated that they would like to keep mask-wearing in place.

The rules are complicated further by different countries’ rules, and whether or not passengers will need to wear a mask will depend on which territories they are travelling from and to.

The Independent’s travel correspondent Simon Calder has all the details here:

The UK will no longer be classed as a “virus variant area”, according to Germany’s Robert Koch Institute, with the rules relaxed for inbound travellers.

Double-jabbed travellers from the UK can forgo quarantine, while unvaccinated Brits can enter the country but must self-isolate for 10 days.

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British Airways has settled a legal claim over a major data breach that affected 420,000 customers and staff.

The breach in 2018 included the leaking of names, addresses and card payment details and led to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) handing out its largest ever fine of £20m.

Law firm Pogust, Goodhead, Mousinho, Bianchini and Martins (PGMBM) said the settlement was reached following mediation with BA and the terms are confidential.

Previously, lawyers said the lawsuit was the largest group action over a data breach in British legal history, with 16,000 claimants when filed in April last year.

The deal struck will see claimants receive payouts but also includes no admission of liability by the airline.

Harris Pogust, chairman of PGMBM, said: “We are very pleased to have come to a resolution on this matter after constructive mediation with British Airways. This represents an extremely positive and timely solution for those affected by the data incident.

“The Information Commissioner’s Office laid out how BA did not take adequate measures to keep its passengers’ personal and financial information secure. However, this did not provide redress to those affected. This settlement now addresses that.”

Reporting by agencies

Some 22 countries meet the government’s threshold for moving from the amber to the green list for travel, an expert has said.

Among them are tourism favourites France and Italy, alongside potential European holiday destinations Austria, Norway, Denmark and Czech Republic.

Robert Boyle, aviation consultant and former chief strategist for British Airways, claimed to have compiled the list based on the data the UK government is supposedly using to determine destinations’ colour classifications in its traffic light system for international travel.

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Tourism chiefs in Spain‘s Balearic Islands have called for responsibility from holidaymakers and residents amid fears the islands may be removed from the UK government’s green travel list after a sharp rise in coronavirus cases.

The 14-day Covid-19 contagion rate was 185 cases per 100,000 inhabitants on 5 July, according to Spanish health ministry data – more than double the figure of 91.1 that the islands had when the UK government moved Mallorca, Ibiza and Menorca to the green list on 30 June.

Spain’s national two-week coronavirus rate is now 204, an increase which has prompted concern that the country is entering a fifth wave of Covid-19, as infections among younger people have risen sharply with most still unvaccinated.

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