New York Gov. Cuomo Demands UK Flight Ban, Cites Mutated Coronavirus Strain

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) is calling on the Trump administration to take action and implement restrictions for travel from the United Kingdom following reports of a coronavirus strain which is alleged to be more infectious.

Breitbart London reports a new, more contagious strain of the Chinese coronavirus has been found in London and the south-east, prompting another broad lockdown.

Cuomo called on the Trump administration to act in a variety of ways — from mandatory testing for those hailing from the area to a travel ban from Europe.

“There is a disturbing story coming out of the United Kingdom of a highly contagious new variant of the COVID-19 virus,” Cuomo said in a Sunday statement.

The New York Democrat explained “a number” of countries have already “banned people from the UK, and 120 countries demand that before you get on a flight in the UK to come to their country, you have to have tested negative.”

Continent Cut Off: France Bans Travel With UK as New Coronavirus Strain Takes Hold https://t.co/3xRdbo2bhD

— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) December 21, 2020

“The United States has a number of flights coming in from the UK each day and we have done absolutely nothing. To me, this is reprehensible because this is what happened in the spring,” he continued, accusing the U.S. government of acting in a “grossly negligent way.”

“It’s high time the federal government takes swift action, because today that variant is getting on a plane and landing in JFK, and all it takes is one person,” he said, referencing the complaints he made earlier this year after accusing Trump of banning travel from Europe too late.

During his DNC speech in August, Cuomo claimed that the White House “didn’t even see it coming,” labeling the Chinese coronavirus — which originated in Wuhan, China — the “European virus.”

“The European virus infected the northeast while the White House still fixated on China,” Cuomo said. “The virus had been attacking us for months before they even knew it was here.”

Trump banned travel from China as early as January and banned travel from Europe in March.

Cuomo’s New York has reported the highest number of coronavirus fatalities — over 36,000 — despite having some of the strictest restrictions in the nation. The number includes thousands of patients of long-term care facilities, as Cuomo originally instructed nursing homes to accept coronavirus patients to clear out hospitals.

The Navy hospital ship USNS Comfort docked in New York earlier this year to provide support to hospitals overrun by coronavirus patients, but it never came close to reaching its 1,000-bed capacity, treating just 182 patients.