EU backs Covid-19 tests for inbound passengers from China

The EU has backed the introduction of pre-flight Covid-19 tests for passengers from China and a ramped up search for new variants due to concerns over a lack of data from Beijing as the virus surges through its large population.

The EU’s crisis response committee agreed late on Wednesday that “member states are strongly encouraged” to require passengers to provide a negative Covid-19 test prior to departure from China, a statement from the Swedish EU presidency read.

Governments are also encouraged to introduce random testing of passengers arriving from China at airports, the testing of aircraft waste water, and the genetic sequencing of any positive Covid-19 samples that are found. Passengers are recommended to wear medical masks or respirators on flights to and from China.

The move is due to concern over a lack of transparent data about hospitalisations and deaths in China, which has reported fewer than one death a day over the past month as the virus surges through its population, at odds with the fatality record of the virus and reports of overwhelmed Chinese hospitals and crematoriums.

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As a result international health authorities are concerned they would have little warning if a dangerous new variant were to emerge from China. The virus will have many opportunities to evolve as it sweeps through its population of 1.4 billion, and the lack of transparency has stirred unwelcome memories of efforts to suppress information about the initial Wuhan outbreak in December 2019.

“We believe the current numbers being published from China underrepresent the true impact of the disease in terms of hospital admissions, ICU admissions, and particularly in terms of deaths,” the WHO emergencies chief Mike Ryan told journalists.

He said it was is “understandable” that countries would choose to impose tests on passengers arriving from China in the circumstances, describing it as “not an excessive measure”.

A spokeswoman for China’s foreign ministry said “China has always shared its information and data responsibly with the international community”, and urged against “discriminatory measures against certain countries”. For its part China obliges incoming passengers to provide negative Covid-19 tests.

The US, UK, India, Japan,and a string of other countries have already introduced pre-flight test requirements from China.