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		</div><p>A pre-departure rapid Covid-19 testing facility has been launched at Heathrow Airport.<br />
From Tuesday, the facilities in Terminals 2 and 5 will initially offer tests to passengers travelling to Hong Kong and Italy before they fly.</p>
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<p>To start, the facilities will offer LAMP testing and will expand to offer antigen testing in the coming weeks.<br />
Unlike PCR tests, which are used by the NHS, LAMP and antigen tests can be processed without being sent to a laboratory.</p>
<p>Announcing the launch, aviation services company Collinson and logistics firm Swissport described the pre-departure testing regime as the “crucial next step toward keeping the travel industry moving while limiting the spread of the virus”.</p>
<p>The private test costs £80 and aims to provide results in around one hour, with passengers interested in using the facility required to book a test online before making their way to the airport.<br />
The testing facilities will initially be open for four weeks.</p>
<blockquote><p>With countries around the world adding the UK to their list of high-risk countries, we need to find a way to work with governments, leading travel brands and other commercial entities to safely open up travel out of the UK</p></blockquote>
<p>The announcement follows the launch of Collinson and Swissport’s test-on-arrival facility at Heathrow in August, which is still sitting empty as it has yet to gain Government approval for use.<br />
Heathrow’s chief executive John Holland-Kaye said: “These facilities will make it easier for passengers going to those countries to get a test and have the potential to provide a service for arriving passengers.</p>
<p>“Ultimately, we need a common international standard for pre-departure testing, and we welcome the UK Government’s recent announcement that it wants to take a global lead in establishing this.<br />
“We will work with them to make this happen as soon as possible, so that we protect livelihoods as well as lives.”</p>
<p>Earlier this month, the Government unveiled a task force to develop a coronavirus testing system as a potential way of easing quarantine restrictions for arriving passengers.<br />
David Evans, joint chief executive officer at Collinson, said: “With countries around the world adding the UK to their list of high-risk countries, we need to find a way to work with governments, leading travel brands and other commercial entities to safely open up travel out of the UK.”</p>
<p>Cathay Pacific,â¯British Airways and Virgin Atlantic Airlines all fly routes that now require pre-departure tests.<br />
Virgin Atlantic’s chief executive Shai Weiss said: “As long as the 14-day quarantine remains in place, demand for travel will not return and the UK’s economic recovery, which relies on free-flowing trade and tourism, cannot take off.</p>
<p>“Half a million UK jobs depend on open skies and a fully functioning UK aviation industry.<br />
“The Government’s global travel task force must act swiftly to replace quarantine with passenger testing in November.”</p>
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