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The travel ban on Denmark is to be lifted after the country culled 17 million mink in a bid to suppress a new strain of Covid that emerged from the animals.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps announced the air, sea and land ban would be removed from Saturday at 4 am but it would not be granted a travel corridor, which means travellers will have to quarantine for 14 days on arrival in the UK.

© Jens Büttner/picture alliance via Getty Images 12 August 2020, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Rostock: Behind the wide sandy beach, the spa promenade and the historic lighthouse in Warnemünde, the ferry "Copenhagen" operated by the Scandlines shipping company from Denmark travels through the sea channel to the Rostock ferry port. Photo: Jens Büttner/dpa-Zentralbild/ZB (Photo by Jens Büttner/picture alliance via Getty Images)

The cull was carried out this month after a strain of Covid from the mink raised concerns that it could counter new vaccines being developed to combat the disease.

Mr Shapps also announced that Estonia and Latvia will be removed from the UK’s “green” list allowing quarantine free travel, a move that also becomes active at 4am on Saturday.

However, winter sun destinations in the Pacific Islands will be granted travel corridors including Samoa, Kiribati, Micronesia, Tonga, Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands.

© Jamie Lorriman/Pool via REUTERS Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson speaks during a news conference on the ongoing situation with the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at Downing Street, in London, Britain November 26, 2020. Jamie Lorriman/Pool via REUTERS

Also added to the “green” list are Bhutan, Timor-Leste, Mongolia and Aruba.

The UK travel ban that has prevented all but essential journeys for work or education will be lifted next Wednesday, December 2, opening up the travel corridors.

© Patrick Pleul/picture alliance via Getty Images 09 July 2020, Denmark, Gudhjem: A sailing boat and a motorboat with tourists can be seen on the Baltic Sea off the Danish island of Bornholm. The island of Bornholm is - together with the offshore archipelago Ertholmene - Denmark's easternmost island. Thanks to its location, the island of Bornholm counts many hours of sunshine. Photo: Patrick Pleul/dpa-Zentralbild/ZB (Photo by Patrick Pleul/picture alliance via Getty Images)

Mr Shapps also announced earlier this week that from December 15, travellers will be able to reduce their time in quarantine to at least five days if they pay for a Covid test and are negative for the virus.