THE Balearic and Canary Islands have been added to the list of areas where all non-essential travel should be avoided, the Government has said.

Jet2 had earlier announced they had suspended flights to mainland Spain from the UK as of tomorrow.

The Leeds-Bradford Airport based airline are also suspending flights to and from Faro in Portugal.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office move came after Downing Street warned "no travel is risk-free" after a coronavirus quarantine requirement for people arriving in the UK from Spain was reintroduced.

The FCO updated its travel advice for visits to Spain, saying: "The FCO advise against all non-essential travel to Spain, including the Balearic and Canary Islands, based on the current assessment of Covid-19 risks in the country."

An FCO spokesman said: "We have considered the overall situation for British nationals travelling to and from the Balearic and Canary Islands, including the impact of the requirement to self-isolate on return to the UK, and concluded that we should advise British nationals against all non-essential travel to the whole of Spain."

In a statement Jet2 earlier said: "Following the latest Government advice regarding travel to Mainland Spain from the UK, we have taken to decision to suspend our flights and holidays programme to Costa de Almeria, Alicante, Malaga and Murcia from July 28 up to and including August 16.

"Customers with inbound flights from Mainland Spain to the UK up until August 3 will return on their flight as booked.

"Customers with inbound flights to the UK between August 4-16 will be contacted to discuss their options, so we urge customers not to contact us.

"For customers who are due to travel to Mainland Spain from August 17 onwards, we will provide an additional update once we receive further information from the Government.

"We urge the Government to provide the industry with clarity so that we can keep our all-important customers up-to-date and informed.

"We are continuing to operate flights and holidays to our destinations in the Balearic Islands and Canary Islands as scheduled."

The airline also said it was suspending its holidays and flights programme to Faro in the Algarve up to and including August 16.

The FCO announcement came after the Prime Minister's official spokesman said decisions on border measures and travel advice "can be changed rapidly if necessary to help stop the spread of the disease".

He went on: "Unfortunately no travel is risk-free during this pandemic and disruption is possible and so anyone travelling abroad should be aware that our travel advice and exemption list is under constant review as we monitor the international situation."

The decision comes after the Spanish government said it was in talks with the UK about excluding the Balearic and Canary Islands from its quarantine measures.

But Health Minister Lord Bethell said: "Within individual countries there is no way for us to control intra-country transport, it is therefore very difficult and challenging to have a regional exemption list, and that is why we've not been able to give exemptions to the Balearics."

There is a requirement to self-isolate on return to the UK from Portugal, including Madeira and the Azores.