Raab in talks to fly stranded Britons home

Tens of thousands trapped as virus shuts borders

DOMINIC Raab is in advanced talks with grounded airlines over chartering multiple flights to bring home tens of thousands of Britons stranded abroad.

The Foreign Secretary could announce a rescue package as early as today to repatriate those trapped in India, New Zealand, South America and elsewhere.

Britons abroad have told how they face vastly inflated ticket costs for flights home, with fares from New Zealand reportedly costing £40,000.

Pensioners, pregnant women and young children are among the tourists many of whom complain they have been left in the dark as to how they might get home.

Several have seen their flights cancelled at the last minute; others have told how they faced several hours on the phone to embassies only to find there was no help.

With most airline fleets grounded due to a lack of travellers, scores of passenger jets are sitting idle.

However, a Government source yesterday urged travellers to continue to make every effort to get home under their own steam if they could. It was announced last week that some stranded holidaymakers would be offered emergency loans as a last resort.

The source said: ‘Everything is being done to arrange flights to get people back from abroad, particularly the vulnerable.

‘But the advice is very clear – if there are commercial options to get home then take them now. Don’t sit around hoping there will be a rescue flight coming for you. Get home while you still can.’

The source played down reports that the RAF will lead the repatriation effort, saying: ‘The scale of the challenge is huge – there are tens of thousands of people who need to get back.

‘Realistically that means we are talking about using commercial airlines.’

The Government has chartered only a small number of British Airways repatriation flights, with three planes set to take off from Lima, the capital of Peru, for London this week.

Some of the stranded Britons claim other European countries are doing far more to repatriate their citizens.

A couple stuck in New Zealand said the cheapest tickets home cost £15,000. Tim Johnson, 30, a marine engineer, said the highest he found was a £40,096 flight from Auckland to London with Qatar Airlines on March 31.

He told The Observer: ‘The cost of the flights has been far out of reach of the people stranded. Yet the embassy and Foreign Office lauded these flights as a diplomatic breakthrough.

‘The German government chartered a whole bunch of Lufthansa and Condor planes. A lot of Europeans have been repatriated without needing to kick up a fuss.’

The Foreign Office has doubled its capacity to answer calls and plans to double it again. It is also looking to find accommodation for those who cannot get a flight. Mr Raab told Parliament last week that his staff were working with other nations and airlines to ‘overcome barriers’.

But he said the situation was being made worse by countries closing their borders at short or no notice.

A Foreign and Commonwealth

Office spokesman said: ‘The Government is seeking to keep key transit routes open as long as possible and is in touch with international partners and the airline industry to make this happen. Consular staff are supporting those with urgent need while providing travel advice and support to those still abroad.’ The chairman of the Commons foreign affairs committee yesterday demanded the Government provide evidence it was taking ‘every possible step’ to help.

Tory MP Tom Tugendhat said the committee had received several complaints about the consular help being provided to UK citizens across the globe.

He said there were concerns several were ‘running out of medication, are in need of medical attention, are in serious financial difficulty, and often in considerable distress’.

Mr Tugendhat set out a list of forensic questions for Mr Raab and posted them on Twitter.

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‘Get home while you still can’ ‘Considerable distress’