Canada imposes 3-day U.K. passenger flight ban to block new COVID-19 variant

Toronto international aiport
(Image credit: Cole Burston/Getty Images)

Canada joined a growing number of European countries Sunday night and banned passenger flights from Britain, effective midnight Sunday, as southern England grapples with a new variant of COVID-19. The ban will be in place for 72 hours, Canada's health ministry said, and it will not apply to cargo planes or emergency landings. The three-day ban — which falls somewhere in the middle of the durations imposed by different European countries — is "necessary for aviation safety and the protection of the public," Transport Canada said.

The new strain of COVID-19 is up to 70 percent more transmissible than the primary COVID-19 strain spreading around the world, officials say, and it's likely but not certain the existing vaccines will work to inoculate people against the new variant. Canada said no new cases linked to the new variant have been detected in the country.

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.