People entering England and Scotland will have to show a negative Covid-19 test result starting next week as authorities try to ramp up protection against new, more infectious strains of the coronavirus from other countries, Reuters reports.

Passengers arriving by boat, plane or train will have to take a test a maximum of 72 hours before departure, mirroring measures taken last year by other countries around the world.

“We already have significant measures in place to prevent imported cases of Covid-19, but with new strains of the virus developing internationally we must take further precautions,” Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said.

He said there were concerns that vaccines might not work properly against the highly transmissible variant of the coronavirus discovered in South Africa, echoing recent comments from other government officials.