To think we shouldn't be bringing brits back from China

[MozzchopsThirty]

I see the US are rescuing their citizens.
How does this work?
Do they quarantine the plane, crew & passengers

Surely this just creates more risk

IMHO lockdown should mean lockdown

I don't think this should be an emotional decision. It's purely practical and I think it depends on capacity. If we have suitable quarantine procedures and beds in isolation units then we should bring people back. If we don't, then there's absolutely no point bringing people back until we've thrown enough resources at this to have an adequate response. We'd be better to put the infrastructure in place first, then bring people back.
The airport testing when people came back from Ebola regions was woefully inadequate. I hope they have learnt from that.

I think lockdown should be lockdown. We should give money to the Chinese authorities to deal with the outbreak in situ. It would be a disaster to spread it around the world.

All reminiscent of the plague village of Eyem.

'If her medication is starting to run out then is that because she didn't take enough with her? That's down to her to manage and not the government if that is the case'

Let them eat cake, eh?

I am also wondering why Britain hasn't been given permission to bring people back and other countries have?

The grandmother in Wuhan wasn't alone she was visiting her grandson who lives there. She had obviously taken extra medicine because her grandson showed the camera a full one of those weekly pill boxes and she was already over the original departure date.

I always take extras when I travel, medication and contacts, but usually for a few more days. No one can plan for an indefinite quarantine.

She did take extra medication. She was expecting to fly home already?!

I have a friend who has lived in China for almost 15 years
I don't think she should be able to vote for things like brexit etc as it has no effect on her at all.
She will never return to the UK
She might not be affected by Brexit but all Brits living in the EU are and many were unable to vote due to the 15 year rule. With the withdrawal agreement passing at least rights of residence and health care access are protected. This was not the case if a no deal happened. It would have been an absolute nightmare for people who exercised their right to freedom of movement in good faith for all kinds of reasons - work, family etc. People who move abroad are not traitors you know.

So yes I think if you leave, work abroad and have no intention of returning (unless there's an outbreak then you can't wait to get back). Then yes you lose your UK rights

How do you know if people have no intention of returning or not? Many people work abroad for many years and then return to the UK later. Or unexpected situations arise and they have to return - sick family member etc.
A British citizen is a British citizen, wherever they are in the world and is protected by British law. The only time they should lose their rights is if they give up their British citizenship.

It's all very well you talking the way you are but you aren't in China and don't know what it's like out there at the moment. If it was you or a family member out there it would be a completely different story.

I think people should be brought back and quarantined if they wish to return, with priority being given to those most at risk eg. the elderly, those with long term health conditions and families with young children.

I only take a few days extra. You can't take huge amounts!

I have to agree with the view point that this is not ebola. Although the virus has jumped, and we don't know the full ramifications of it yet - the death toll is low, and the hysteria high.

A lot of this "I'm alright jack" must come from deep rooted racism surely - if these people were western looking, trapped in a Western country with further risks than just the virus the answers might be different. I get the impression people just don't care about leaving all the "Chinese" people in China.

They are British, let's bring them home. As said, we don't know how long Wuhan will need to be contained for - if it is too prolonged surely the risks would be even greater when they do eventually come home as they would have more chance to encounter the virus?

The problem is the lack of information about this new strain - the fact you can have it for two weeks without showing symptoms is ringing alarm bells. Hence, the precautions.

I would rather have everyone evacuated on one plane, tested for the virus and given the appropriate treatment, rather than travelling across a dozen planes and spreading the bug.

FWIW, I expect it's going to be a lot like the seasonal flu: nasty to encounter and ferocious if you have a compromised immune system, but not world-ending. I am trusting the experts on this and they are not panicking (yet).

Yabu

OP you are rather heartless and showing very low levels of empathy.

British citizens are entitled to consular assistance abroad. Many other countries have ongoing extraction operations in China, although Britain doesn’t (at the moment).

I’m astounded at the number of posters who seem to agree that we should just wash our hands off all Brits once they step over the border. That’s not how the concept of citizenship works.

So much for Big Society.

to clarify, the French being bought back will be in quarantine away from general public, not at home army barracks ? emergency campus ? fed by the army presumably

I agree

defeats the point of isolation surely?

When you see the attitude of the OP and those expressing similar sentiments you see clearly why we have the selfish society and the government we have.

It's not going to happen anyway. This government couldn't organise a piss up in a brewery. There's no way they could sort out evacuating hundreds of potentially infectious people from the other side of the world.

I've just been talking to someone in Wuhan. They've been shut indoors for 4 days, and have been told that they should stay indoors for 2 weeks. They're not supposed to open the windows. Grim and scary. Apparently supermarkets and chemists have been told to stay open.
Yes, British people should be brought home from Wuhan, and quarantined, and should be encouraged to come home from the rest of China, and encouraged to stay at home and watch out for symptoms.
Luckily, the death rate is relatively low, so personally I'm not panicking. I also have loads of Brexit stockpile left!

@tempester28. I’m not sure other countries have. On the Radio this morning someone (I think it was Mat Hancock Secretary of State for Health and Social Care) was saying that before the UK announce what they’re going to do, they want a firm plan in place, rather than just ‘an intention’ as others countries are doing. I got the impression that none of the ‘uplifts’ had yet been approved by China

I wish I’d been able to hear it more clearly, but I took from it that the people would actually be in isolation places for a fortnight before they were allowed to return home (so not just told to stay at home)

I'm British and in China, thankfully not in Wuhan.

We briefly considered coming home, but thought that we'd be safer staying in our apartment because it's traveling and moving with other people that would put us most at risk.

OP is not covering herself in glory though. I mean, just because she's alright....

re Matt Hancock knowing him he will probably suggest an IT solution
& please note that most facemask you buy come from....

Oh for goodness sake. They’re not bringing back brits from China. I’m IN China currently. This whole thing has been blown out of proportion. The US are talking of sending in a plane to get US citizens from wuhan, the quarantined infected city only. Of COURSE they’ll be quarantined. The virus is like the common cold for 90% of people. Most people have already recovered. Passengers would simply need to remain indoors for 2 weeks and if they’re not showing any flu symptoms they’d be fine to go out and mix with people. Stop being hysterical. 🙄🙄🙄 Were you asking for French people to be banned from the UK during the 2014-2015 flu outbreak which killed 19000 people? Or were you calling for Americans to be kept out of the UK during the 2009 swine flu epidemic which killed 11000 people? Calm down and stop fear mongering.

My 23 year old son is visiting friends in Beijing having flown in via wuhan the day before flights were stopped. He doesn't seem overly concerned and is exercising good hygiene and wearing a mask. His friends have contacts working in the hospitals and the situation seems a lot bigger than us being reported, particularly with regard to deaths of otherwise healthy people

Luckily, the death rate is relatively low

A) you believe the Chinese Govt?
B) the report rate & death rate is much lower than would be expected as people are not being recorded as being ill/having died from this, especially out of the city centre.
C) YET. The number of reported deaths doubled overnight. We are only 3/4 weeks on from the initial report & 5 million people left Wuhan before it was closed down

I am not sure whether there us any legislation to enforce quarantine on return to the UK??