Europe bans flights from Britain, as country warns new coronavirus strain

European countries started banning flights coming from the UK on Sunday as government in London warned that a potent new strain of the virus was “out of control”.

Following the example of the Netherlands, where a ban on all UK passenger flights came into effect on Sunday, a German government source said Berlin, too, was considering a similar move as “a serious option” for flights from both Britain and South Africa.

The Dutch ban came into effect from 6:00 am (0500 GMT) and will last until January 1. And neighbouring Belgium also said it was suspending flight and train arrivals from Britain from midnight.