The British government announced on Thursday that the remaining seven countries on its red travel list would be removed early on Monday.

After the change takes effect at 4 a.m. local time (0400GMT) on Monday, arrivals in the UK from Colombia, Peru, Panama, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Venezuela, and Ecuador will no longer have to pay to stay in a hotel for quarantine.

Announcing the decision, British Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said on Twitter: "All seven remaining countries on the red list will be removed from Mon 1 Nov at 4am."

"We can also confirm that from Monday, eligible travellers from over 30 new countries and territories including Peru and Uganda will be added to our inbound vax policy, bringing the total number of countries on this list to over 135," said Shapps.

"We will keep the red list category in place as a precautionary measure to protect public health and are prepared to add countries and territories back if needed, as the UK's first line of defence."/aa