Rejected petition Remove the requirement to use NHS COVID tests on entry to Wales from overseas.
Covid tests on arrival from overseas are required across the UK. People living in, or staying in England are able to choose their provider and cost, tests can cost less than £50.
In Wales, we are required to use NHS tests, costing at least £88 per test. This also applies to arrivals from overseas who plan to stay in Wales for tourism or other purposes. This is an unfair & unreasonable tax on those living in or visiting Wales.
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FIrst Minister Mark Drakeford has said that he regrets UK Government's decision to relax travel restrictions, however he is penalising the people of Wales for Westminster's decisions. Rather than encouraging people to stay in, or visit Wales' many tourist attractions, this action impacts not only on the people of Wales who may want to travel overseas, but also on the tourism industry within Wales. If overseas travellers are required to take more expensive tests in order to visit Wales rather than England, they are less likely to visit our beautiful country, and help our economy move to a more healthy future.
Mr Drakeford's resistance to change is not only unfair to the people of Wales, but a critical blow to the Welsh tourist economy as a whole.
Why was this petition rejected?
There’s already a petition about this issue. We cannot accept a new petition when we already have one about a very similar issue, or if the Petitions Committee has considered one in the last year.
Another similar petition is already collecting signatures: https://petitions.senedd.wales/petitions/244889
You are more likely to get action on this issue if you sign and share a single petition.
We only reject petitions that don’t meet the petition standards
Rejected petitions are published in the language in which they were submitted