France-UK border in Channel to remain open through Christmas

The U.K. and France agreed to keep the key Dover-Calais trade crossing, including Eurotunnel, open over Christmas.

Both ports will remain operational to allow hauliers and citizens to “return home as soon as possible,” U.K. Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said on Twitter Wednesday morning. Coronavirus testing will also continue in Kent, the county where Dover is located, he said.

France had cut off shipments from Dover, the U.K.’s busiest port, on Sunday due to concerns related to a faster-spreading variant of Covid-19 that prompted the government to lock down London and surrounding areas.