A series of Facebook posts falsely claimed that the British government had lied to the general public by promising that they would be allowed to holiday abroad if they were vaccinated against COVID-19. However, no such offer was made.
The posts follow a government announcement that anyone traveling abroad after 29 March for good reason will be fined £ 5,000 under new COVID-19 laws (here). One such message says: ‘For those who gabble so that they may fly … there has been lying to you. £ 5,000 fine – illegal to go on holiday from Monday. It’s about control – can you see? ‘(here).
Another Facebook user says in a video that the government has broken public confidence by banning foreign travel to promising holidays ‘if you get the new technology’. He adds: “Well done, stupid people, because you gave up your free will for a holiday. Love, light and not going on holiday again this year, are you? But you can die ”(here).
However, both posts cannot acknowledge that holidays abroad have already been banned in England under a “Stay at Home” cover (here, www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-56493002). This legislation would expire at the end of March, which is why MPs voted on 25 March on new laws – which will come into force on 29 March and last until June.
For the first time, the replacement legislation included a specific section for foreign travel, which can be seen under Regulation 8 (here). It prohibits travel abroad without a reasonable excuse (here). Prime Minister Boris Johnson has already said a ban on non-essential foreign travel will apply until May 17; however, he also said he would publish a review on this on April 12 (here, here).
Instead of the British government insisting that citizens be vaccinated before going on holiday, it is travel companies and destination countries themselves who have proposed what rules can be implemented. Australian airline Qantas has said it will need proof of vaccination before passengers can board their flights (here), while several short-haul carriers have said they do not intend to follow their example (here).
The Greek government, meanwhile, has said that tourists from Britain should provide evidence of a vaccination, antibodies or a recent negative test (here). Turkey has said it will not need a vaccine vaccine – nor is it likely to undergo a negative test (here).
VERDICT
Missing context. The British government did not promise people that they would be able to go on holiday if they got the vaccine. Holidays are already banned under the “Stay at Home” blanket rules that ended in March and have been replaced by new legislation specifically mentioning a foreign travel ban. It will be reviewed in April – and travel requirements will be decided by travel companies and various governments on the holiday destinations themselves.
This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our fact-checking work here.