Mayor Bill de Blasio is calling on the federal government for a full travel ban for people coming from the United Kingdom.
De Blasio’s announcement comes as a new, more contagious strain of the coronavirus was discovered in New York.
The new variant was initially discovered in the United Kingdom.
“If we don’t have a travel ban, then we are literally inviting this new variant into our door,” de Blasio says. “Let’s shut down that danger right now.”
De Blasio says the federal government must step in and act, saying that travelers from the United Kingdom do not even need to prove they have a negative coronavirus test to get on a plane.
He says this creates a major risk for New York residents.