MP in vow to raise travel red list issues
AVALLEY MP has vowed to press the Government on Covid travel restrictions as some of her constituents remain separated by thousands of miles.
Haslingden’s Sara Britcliffe has promised to continue raising the issue of coronavirus travel restrictions with the Government after it was announced that Pakistan would remain on the red list - meaning countless families remain separated.
Ms Britcliffe has already spoken with Pakistani High Commissioner Moazzam Ahmad Khan, in which the two discussed the country’s strategy for leaving the UK’s travel restrictions.
She spoke after Pakistan’s special assistant on health, Faisal Sultan, wrote to health minister Sajid Javid on August 11 protesting his nation’s sustained position on the red list.
“A lot of my constituents have raised concerns with me when they have seen other countries move to the amber list while Pakistan remains on the red list,” said the Conservative MP, whose seat also covers Hyndburn.
“When Pakistan was first moved onto the red list there were problems with family members coming home and I believe these issues still exist now. There are families throughout the world who have been unable to see their relatives for a long time. It’s now about making sure that countries move off the red list when it is safe to do so.”
While Covid restrictions have been mostly lifted in the UK, travel bans to certain countries are still in place to prevent variants coming into Britain. A traffic light system has been established for overseas travel, with the Government advising that no one make the trip to countries on the red list. If you do make the journey, upon your return to England, you must have three separate Covid tests and spend 10 days in managed quarantine at a cost of £1,750 per adult, with an additional £650 for children aged 12 and over.
In contrast, travelling to amber list countries requires returning holidaymakers to isolate for 10 days at home.
Ms Britcliffe says constituents brought up the issue of Pakistan after neighbouring India was moved to the amber list on August 5.
The Johnson administration says much of the decision is down to low sequencing rates in Pakistan. According to data, only 315 sequences were shared internationally by officials in Islamabad between January and July.
This means it is very hard to know if the rise in cases in Pakistan is being driven by existing variants or new variants - as yet unsequenced.
Ms Britcliffe added: “We will look to help Pakistan with its testing and areas of concern but, at the end of the day, we will move countries when it is safe to do so. We don’t want more variants, that cause problems, coming into the country.”