Countries worldwide have banned arrivals from the UK after the country reported that a new highly infectious coronavirus was ‘out of control’, news agency AFP reported.

Britain Prime Minister Boris Johnson was to chair the COBR emergencies committee on Monday, his office said, after a slew of nations from Turkey to Canada blocked arrivals from Britain by air.

The Netherlands was the first nation
to suspend travel to and from UK on Sunday which came into effect from 6 am
(0500 GMT) and will last under January 1. Following in the lines of the Dutch,
Belgium has barred flights and trains arriving from Britain from midnight (2300
GMT).

The ban will be imposed for at least 24 hours, Prime Minister Alexander
De Croo told Belgian television channel. 

Germany is also considering joining
Belgium in its move to bar flights from the UK and South Africa, where the
variant has also been detected, a health ministry source there told AFP.

Also Read | England, Italy brace for Christmas lockdowns as Europe battles virus surge

The
World Health Organization has directed its European members to reinforce
measures against the coronavirus due to the more infectious variant circulating
in the United Kingdom.

The
new strain has reached Denmark, Netherlands and Australia, according to the
WHO.

The
unanimous decision comes after UK Prime Minister enforced a Tier-4 ‘Christmas’
lockdown in London and parts of Southeast England till at least December 30.

Speaking on Sky News, UK Health Secretary Matt
Hancock said the situation was “deadly serious.”

The sudden rise in
COVID-19 cases in the UK was linked to the new coronavirus variant, that is
thought to be 70% more infectious compared to the other strains. The new strain was supposedly discovered in a
patient in September. However, its repercussions have only been discovered
during remodelling on Friday, Susan Hopkins of
Public Health England told Sky News.

It is still unclear whether this prohibition on travellers from the
United Kingdom would apply to all EU countries. If this travel ban continues
till January, it could add to transport problems caused by Brexit deal.