British MP and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Aviation and Maritime, Robert Courts, has announced that domestic cruises will be resuming on May 17 in England.

This was said during a virtual meeting of the All Party Parliamentary Maritime and Group (APPMPG) on March 8, the group wrote in a tweet. Courts later confirmed the news to the British media outlet, The Independent.

According to The Independent, Courts told MPs that the government is “working with the home nations to get UK-wide domestic cruising up and running.” Meanwhile, voyages between English ports will likely be restarting on May 17.

“Courts said the domestic move would help the cruise industry restore confidence and demonstrate the robustness of their protocols for passengers and crew, The Independent wrote.

Paul Ludlow, the President of P&O Cruises, who earlier announced short UK cruises starting summer 2021, said he is “delighted” with the news.

“We are delighted that the government has acknowledged that UK domestic cruise holidays can begin from May 17,” Ludlow said, according to the cruise line’s Facebook post.

“Whilst it will take some weeks after this date for us to restart our operations, we are very much looking forward to welcoming guests onboard this summer for our series of Ultimate Escape staycations – UK coastal cruises. Details of these, with ships, dates and itineraries will be announced later this month,” he added.