TRAVEL INDUSTRY REVOLTS
Quarantine rules kick in today ... but holiday firms, Heathrow boss and airline giants unite to slam economically ‘devastating’ scheme
TRANSPORT chiefs lined up last night to attack the Government’s ‘poorly thought-out’ and economically ‘devastating’ travel quarantine which comes into force today.
Heathrow boss John Holland-Kaye warned the scheme would hasten the loss of up to 25,000 jobs and hinder Britain’s ability ‘to fight for our place in the world’.
Channel Tunnel boss Jacques Gounon said the policy had been fraught with problems due to its late introduction last week and accused Ministers of ‘ intransigence’. Meanwhile, furious airline chiefs wrote to Home Secretary Priti Patel demanding that plans for ‘ air bridges’ with other countries be drawn up within days.
Last night she defended the quarantine, saying: ‘We all want to return to normal as quickly as possible. But this cannot be at the expense of lives.
‘The science is clear that if we limit the risk of new cases being brought in from abroad, we can help stop a devastating second wave. That is why the measures coming into force today are necessary.’
Under the scheme, all travellers arriving in Britain – including returning UK holidaymakers – will have to self-isolate for a fortnight. It applies to air, rail and sea passengers who face on-the-spot fines if caught breaking the rules.
But critics say it is ‘unworkable’ due to a number of loopholes.
Fresh concerns were raised yesterday about how the scheme will be enforced, with one group of 500 campaigning travel firms claiming it has ‘more holes than a sieve’.
Unions also added to the criticism, branding the scheme a ‘populist move’ with no scientific basis. Labour added that the measures appeared to show the Government ‘just hasn’t got a plan’.
The controversy comes after British Airways, easyJet and Ryanair hit ministers with an unprecedented joint legal action arguing the scheme is illegal on the grounds that it is discriminatory, irrational and disproportionate.
They complain it was drawn up without consultation even though it could destroy attempts to rebuild their businesses.
The airlines want ‘air bridge’ deals, where countries agree on quarantine-free travel with each other, to salvage what is left of the summer holiday season and prevent deeper economic harm.
Measures could include health screening for arrivals from destinations with low infection rates, with only those showing symptoms going into quarantine. Mr HollandKaye led the criticism last night, saying the industry needs ‘more targeted’ measures and warned that he had heard of one UK airport facing bankruptcy in ‘days’.
He added: ‘What we’ve heard already from the airlines is that they are cutting around a third of all employees, so that would be 25,000 people out of work. That would be a devastating blow.’
The Heathrow chief executive said the aviation industry was in ‘survival mode and having to make unpalatable decisions’.
He also told The City View podcast: ‘I don’t think we should make their jobs harder for them by putting further hurdles [like this quarantine] in their way. We will need to fight as a country for our place in the world.’
Countries already interested in striking quarantine-free ‘travel corridors’ with Britain to get tourism going again include Portugal, Spain, France, Italy and Greece.
Travel firms complain that they were issued with details of the strict new rules late on Friday, leaving them only 48 hours to ensure they are in place.
Mr Gounon, chief executive of Getlink which owns the Channel Tunnel, sent a scathing letter to Boris Johnson.
He wrote: ‘Limited consultation by the Home Office and departmental intransigence have led to a situation that puts a serious risk on the efficiency of operations at the Channel Tunnel, a vital link in the Great British supply chain.’
In a joint statement, British Airways, Ryanair and easyJet warned that they were prepared to take their legal action further.
They added: ‘These measures are disproportionate and unfair on British citizens as well as international visitors arriving in the UK.
‘We urge the UK Government to remove this ineffective visitor quarantine which will have a devastating effect on the UK’s tourism industry and will destroy (even more) thousands of jobs in this unprecedented crisis.’ The 23-page
‘Need to fight for our place in world’
document of measures sent to travel bosses on Friday states that the airlines are ‘not asked to require passengers to complete the passenger form or refuse boarding if not completed’.
With only ‘spot checks’ to be carried out by an already depleted Border Force, there are fears many arrivals could simply slip through unchallenged, particularly those using e-gates.
Travellers arriving in Britain will be allowed to stay overnight at a hotel or other accommodation before going to the address where they have said they will self-isolate. Critics also say passengers can jump straight on to public transport after arriving, meaning the virus could be spread anyway. They say the list of exemptions for being able to break the 14-day self-isolation is open to interpretation.
There are also fears it will be easy to dodge being caught as health officials will only chase up a small proportion of arrivals on the phone. Paul Charles, coleader of Quash Quarantine, a group of 500 travel firms, said: ‘There are more holes than in a sieve in this unworkable, poorlythought and economically damaging Government policy.’
Jim McMahon, Labour’s transport spokesman, added: ‘Our real concern is that the Government just hasn’t got a plan. They seem to go from one extreme to another. There were no restrictions up until only a couple of days ago.’ Ministers will review the policy every three weeks, meaning the first opportunity for ‘air bridges’ is on June 29.
A Government spokesman said: ‘We are exploring whether we can introduce agreements with other countries when safe to do so, allowing UK residents to go abroad and tourists to come here without facing quarantine on arrival. ‘We recognise the challenges facing the aviation sector ... and have put in place a comprehensive package of financial support.’
‘25,000 people out of work’