A travel firm in Southampton has reported a massive surge in bookings after the government gave the green-light to lateral flow tests for fully vaccinated passengers.

Barrhead Travel, located in Southampton city centre, has had a surge in holiday bookings after the government announced it would offer cheaper travel tests.

According to the government, the reforms will take effect in time for families to return from half-term vacations.

Passengers who have been fully vaccinated will be instructed to provide photographs of their Covid-19 tests for verification.

Nicki Tempest Mitchell, sales and marketing director at Barrhead Travel, said: "I think people have been holding off booking holidays for obvious reasons that the government announcements were quite complex. Travelling got a bit more expensive because people had to do lots of tests.

"The Covid travel tests needed to be updated in time for the half-term vacation. The good news is that now all of that has been relaxed.

"Our fantastic team in Southampton and Isle of Wight have been dealing with customers face to face now."

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said the new changes would make travel more comfortable and simple.

PCR tests conducted on day two after returning to England can cost around £75 per individual under the current system.

Anyone who obtains a positive lateral flow test result will be required to self-isolate and take a free PCR test to confirm it once the rules take effect.

Travellers arriving in England on or after October 24th will be able to arrange lateral flow tests starting on October 22nd, when a list of authorised providers will be published on the gov.uk website.