The information board at Malaga-Costa del Sol Airport. | Jorge Zapata

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Only Spanish citizens and residents of Spain will be allowed to travel from the UK from Tuesday. Spain has joined other countries worldwide in a partial block on flights from the United Kingdom because of fears about the new coronavirus variant.

Spain had initially resisted calls to make a total ban, but the Spanish government has now taken the decision. The government is also strengthening border control with Portugal.

Spain’s decision was taken in conjunction with Portugal and will also mean a reinforcement of the controls at the border with Gibraltar, where the UK government has confirmed that the new variant has been detected.

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Unlike most other countries, which have banned all flights from the UK, the Spanish decision does mean that flights will continue but only for Spanish citizens and residents.

The Netherlands was the first country to announce a flight ban. By mid-afternoon on Monday, dozens of other countries had announced bans as well.

In Europe, Austria has banned flights from midnight of 21 December; Belgium is closing the border with the UK for at least 24 hours (as of midnight); Bulgaria has announced a restriction until December 31, with UK residents in Bulgaria allowed to return to the country; Croatia has a restriction for 48 hours; the Czech Republic has suspended flights between the UK and the Czech Republic; Denmark has banned all flights until Wednesday at least; Estonia's ban is until January 1; there are restrictions on flights to and from Finland until January 4; France is restricting all travel for 48 hours; Germany has banned flights to and from the UK until December 31; Ireland has banned flights from Great Britain for 48 hours, but is permitting flights into the UK; Italy has suspended flights until January 6; Latvia has banned flights; Lithuania's restrictions last until December 31; Luxembourg has banned all flights for an initial 24-hour period; Malta has temporarily suspended flights from the UK; the Netherlands have banned flights to and from the UK until January 1; Norway has temporarily suspended flights from the UK; Poland has suspended flights to and from the UK; Portugal's ban is the same as Spain's in that Portuguese citizens and residents can fly in; Romania has banned all flights to and from the UK for fourteen days; Switzerland has suspended flights to and from the UK until further notice.