British holidaymakers are being warned not to book holidays to countries such as Spain, currently on the government’s amber list.

This month non-essential travel was permitted from the UK as lockdown restrictions eased across Britain.

International travel is allowed once again from today with 12 countries available for leisurely travel without isolating on return. These are defined as ‘green list’ countries.

However, holiday hotspots that UK tourists usually travel to for summer sun - including Spain, Greece, Italy and France - remain on the amber list.

Brits can travel to these destinations; however, they will need to quarantine for 10 days and have two negative Covid tests - one on day two and the other on day eight of quarantine.

Business minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan said scientists still think there is “too great a risk” in travelling to amber list countries for non-urgent reasons such as holidays.

Spain has officially lifted restrictions for UK travellers from Monday, with visitors no longer needing to take a PCR Covid-19 test.

However, tourists going to Spain will still have to quarantine on their return under UK rules.

Mrs Trevelyan told Times Radio: “The reality is, at the moment, amber countries are still not meeting the criteria for our scientists to say that they should be green.

“So the recommendation remains don’t go unless you have to, and remember that, if you do go, you will have to quarantine for 10 days and that will be monitored.

“The reason we ask people still not to go is because there is still too great a risk as far as our scientists are concerned.”

Mrs Trevelyan said the Prime Minister “has been clear” that people should not travel to amber countries unless there is a pressing reason, such as an urgent family need.

Mrs Trevelyan said it is hoped that “the amber numbers will become more green in due course” but “at the moment, today, that means amber countries really aren’t safe to go to”.

It comes one week after Matt Hancock said people should “certainly not” travel to these tourist hot spots, through fear of catching mutant strains of Covid.