Germany will begin mandatory coronavirus testing for travellers returning from high-risk areas in an effort to prevent imported cases as the country fights a new surge in infections.

According to local media, German health minister Jens Spahn said the tests will become mandatory this week and will be free of charge to incoming travellers. The plan does not account for foreign arrivals visiting Germany, according to Deutsche Welle.

Spahn told German broadcaster ARD on Monday: ¡°We have first drafts. We want to coordinate this well with the states because they need to be able to implement it at airports and train stations.¡±

The country had originally planned to make testing voluntary over worries that mandatory testing was not legally viable due to the potential for the policy to encroach on people¡¯s rights.

The Republic of Ireland is also preparing to introduce random testing at airports following a rise in coronavirus cases. Passenger locator forms are also being made electronic and contact tracing teams will be increased, according to health minister Stephen Donnelly.

Meanwhile, a group of 20 UK MPs have signed a letter urging prime minister Boris Johnson to introduce similar testing measures to replace blanket quarantine rules, saying the current system risks the nation being ¡°left behind other nations¡±.

MPs including Sir Graham Brady, chair of the 1922 backbench committee, and former aviation minister Paul Maynard agree with travel industry warnings that thousands of jobs could be lost unless the UK takes a different approach to protecting the country from imported infections. They are also calling on the government to establish localised air bridges with regions within countries such as Spain and Portugal where the coronavirus infection rate is much lower than the rest of the country. It comes after Spain and Luxembourg were added back onto the list of countries from which incoming travellers need to quarantine on arrival.?