Many local residents took the opportunity to visit Liguria on Wednesday, June 3, the first day of the reopening of Italy’s border. Their journeys were not without glitches, with traffic jams of almost one kilometre at Menton Garavan as Italian border police conducted spot checks.

However, the bigger problem was on the way back to France, where police checked drivers and passengers and demanded ID or proof of residence in France. France is not taking its border down until June 15.

Italy also opened up its airports to foreign travellers from Wednesday, while French authorities are still demanding proof of residence.

Since there have been several cases of UK travellers being refused entry at Nice Airport when arriving on BA flights, the airline has imposed its own stringent checks on passengers checking in at Heathrow. Proof of residency in France or Monaco is essential. The situation is likely to become more problematic from June 8, when the UK will impose a 14-day quarantine on all arrivals.