It is clear that Boris Johnson is not learning quickly enough from his mistakes

Editorial: The prime minister’s administration has had a blind spot on international travel since the start of the coronavirus pandemic

The latest ban came into force on Friday (AFP/Getty)

We don’t want to trip up at this late stage,” said Grant Shapps, the transport secretary, as he announced a ban on flights from Brazil and 15 other countries including Portugal in an attempt to prevent a Brazilian variant of coronavirus getting into the UK.

Not for the first time in the pandemic, the government has shut the stable door slowly, and long after the horse has bolted. It has already “tripped up” several times.

Fortunately, Brazil banned flights from the UK as soon as it became aware of the highly infectious strain first detected in Kent which has now spread to the rest of the UK. As a result, there have been few, if any, arrivals from Brazil in recent days – although some passengers might have come in via a third country.