Maidenhead MP criticises Government over travel "chaos"

Maidenhead MP Theresa May stood up for beleaguered holidaymakers, lamented restrictions on global trade and spoken on some difficult Covid realities during a speech in the Commons.

Mrs May (Conservative) was speaking at an Aviation, Travel and Tourism Industries debate in Parliament this month.

During her speech, she lamented travel restrictions, urging for a safe reopening of global trade and travel, blasting the Government’s lack of progress on safely reopening travel.

"The messaging is mixed and the system is chaotic. "

Mrs May said: ” We now have more than 50 per cent of the adult population vaccinated—it is a wonderful programme—yet we are more restricted on travel than we were last year. In 2020, I went to Switzerland in August and South Korea in September. There was no vaccine but travel was possible. This year, there is a vaccine but travel is not possible. I really do not understand the Government’s stance.

“Of course, it is permissible for a person to travel to countries on the amber list, provided that it is practicable for them to quarantine when they come back, but Government Ministers tell people that they must not travel and cannot go on holiday to places on the amber list. The messaging is mixed and the system is chaotic.

“Portugal was put on the green list, people went to the football, then Portugal was put on the amber list, leaving holidaymakers scrabbling for flights and devastated families having to cancel their plans. That is not to mention the impact on the airlines, on travel agents here and on the travel and tourist industry in our longest-standing trading partner in Europe.

“Business travel is practically impossible: global Britain has shut its doors to business and investors. In a normal pre-pandemic year, passengers travelling through Heathrow spent £16 billion throughout the country, including at places such as Legoland Windsor, which is partly in my constituency. That has been lost.

“There are some facts on which the Government need to be upfront with the British people and about which Ministers need to think a bit more when they make decisions. First, we will not eradicate covid-19 from the UK. There will not be a time when we can say that there will never be another case of Covid-19 in this country.

“Secondly, variants will keep on coming. There will be new variants every year. If the Government’s position is that we cannot open up travel until there are no new variants elsewhere in the world, we will never be able to travel abroad ever again.

“The third fact that the Government need to state much more clearly is that sadly people will die from covid here in the UK in the future, as 10,000 to 20,000 people do every year from flu.

“We are falling behind the rest of Europe in our decisions to open up, the Member for Altrincham and Sale West (Sir Graham Brady – CON) has indicated.

“The Government … need to decide whether they want an airline industry and aviation sector in the UK or not, because at the rate they are going, they will not have one, certainly not as a key sector in the economy, as it was before the pandemic. It is incomprehensible, I think, that one of the most heavily vaccinated countries in the world is the one that is most reluctant to give its citizens the freedoms those vaccinations should support.”

Holidaymakers have been able to travel since May 7 as the Government instituted a three tier list of countries where travel has been allowed, arranged into green, amber and red.

Those travelling to green list countries do not need to self-quarantine unless they have Covid symptoms. Holidaymakers must take a Covid-19 test on or before their second day of arrival in the UK. Green list countries include Israel, Australia, New Zealand and Singapore.

Those travelling to amber list countries must self-quarantine for 10 days and take a test on days two and eight of their arrival back to the UK. Amber list countries cover most of the world, including destinations such as the USA, Spain, Portugal and Greece.

People travelling from red list countries may only enter the UK if they have British or Irish citizenship, or have residency rights in the UK. They must quarantine in a managed hotel. Red list countries include Egypt, Pakistan, India, South Africa and the UAE.

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