Why doesn’t U.K. just shut borders & have mandatory quarantine?

[Singaporeslings]

I live in a country where the government shut external borders 9mths ago (similar to Australia but not quite as tough!).
Citizens are allowed back but people like me on a long-term work visa have to apply for permission to leave and re-enter.
And EVERYONE who enters has to do 14-day quarantine at a designated facility. You’re taken from airport to your allocated hotel (which you have to pay approx £1k for but have no choice in) and locked in. Sounds extreme but that (with other strict mandated measures) has kept our case/death numbers v low.
Why haven’t the U.K. govt done this yet???

@Singaporeslings to be fair, the mandated quarantine in hotel was free for citizens in 2020, they only started charging citizens this year. When covid 19 started, most singaporeans zipped back to singapore and there were discounted flights on SIA because the government warned us that other healthcare systems may not have sufficient ventilators and it may be best to be in singapore if one contracts covid. I didn't go back as DH is British and so we stayed in london.
But i know single singaporeans who returned to singapore and are currently wfh for their jobs in London.

One thing that is worrying about singapore however is that vaccine uptake may not be high. My parents don't want to be vaccinated. Their reasoning is that there are only 29 deaths and only 243 active cases so its not worth any perceived risk. Which means that cases would spike up if the economy ever opens up to tourists. On the other hand, i think the vast majority of brits would vaccinate because we see no other option. I might be a healthy 28 year old but I feel a strong moral obligation to vaccinate when 1 in 3 london households have covid and so many people have died.

@dadandtwokids the country that OP is living in imports 99% of its food and over 90% of all goods. Thousands of service workers cross the causeway from malaysia daily to work, the government had to put them in hotels...

because the countries we have been allowed to go to - quarantine free- have all had lower cases than us

As a country that is so heavily reliant on truck freight imports, and “just in time” supply chains, we cannot and will not close the border.

Because the U.K. has a culture of entitlement and “I know my rights” there is a huge emphasis on individuals rights to do whatever the hell they like and sod the consequences for the country. It’s the U.K. culture, society and way of life.

I live in guernsey and we are similar to nz and aus with very strict restrictions but it works and everyone is happy with the outcome which is a covid free normal existence (apart from travel being banned)

@blueangel19 in the country OP is living in, over 5 million people in a country half the size of London of which 1/3 is reservoir and greenland. Higher population density than london and one of the most dense countries in the world. Multi-generational living is the norm, over 90% live in apartments and flats, 3 generations in 3 bedroom apartments. Most low level service jobs are occupied by either foreign workers or workers who travel in from malaysia daily (the government closed the border).

My parents live in singapore and at the start of lockdown, they sent me a picture of their overgrown garden as no one was doing maintenance, my parents haven't hired a tradesman who actually lives in singapore/isn't a foreign worker in years.

Borders and travel corridors are different things

No idea, but too late now. Saw in the news this morning, people arriving (on non-urgent business) from Brazil and South Africa, to no checks at all on arriving here. I fucking despair.

So to all the smug posters in this thread saying it would never happen what do you have to say for yourselves now eh?

I say you still have an open land border to a foreign country. I'd also add a few choice insults but don't want to get deleted....

@DayBath

Update, UK has now decided to close all travel corridors from Monday morning.

So to all the smug posters in this thread saying it would never happen what do you have to say for yourselves now eh?

Did anybody say the travel corridors would never close?

It’s a year too late
But yeah they should have done this

But yeah they should have done this

Done what? What are people agreeing here with?

For the people arguing that the borders should have been closed...what borders do you think you are talking about?

Did anybody say the travel corridors would never close?

I think it's becoming sadly obvious that some don't understand the difference between borders and travel corridors ...

UK government priorities:

Foreign travel > Public health

Because daddy Stanley with his trips to Greece and Boris' cronies would all be impacted and we cant have that can we.

@Puzzledandpissedoff

Did anybody say the travel corridors would never close?

I think it's becoming sadly obvious that some don't understand the difference between borders and travel corridors ...

I was rather getting that impression.

Because our government are a bunch of fucking posh idiots?

So to all the smug posters in this thread saying it would never happen what do you have to say for yourselves now eh?

I don't think that it means what you think it means.
The borders are still open, there's just a requirement to quarantine now from all countries whereas previously there were some exceptions.
Quarantine isn't exactly well enforced either.

@Singaporeslings

I live in a country where the government shut external borders 9mths ago (similar to Australia but not quite as tough!). Citizens are allowed back but people like me on a long-term work visa have to apply for permission to leave and re-enter. And EVERYONE who enters has to do 14-day quarantine at a designated facility. You’re taken from airport to your allocated hotel (which you have to pay approx £1k for but have no choice in) and locked in. Sounds extreme but that (with other strict mandated measures) has kept our case/death numbers v low. Why haven’t the U.K. govt done this yet???

I have always said exactly the same since March, I agree completely.

I also think that those returning from ski trips in feb half term 2020 should have been quarantined.

I would love to know why we haven’t done this when to me it makes total sense. You only have to read threads on here to see that you cannot rely on goodwill to do the right thing.

The borders are still open, there's just a requirement to quarantine now from all countries whereas previously there were some exceptions

There isn't. Again, you're forgetting the actual border.

For other than those transporting freight I think this should be done. Hotels would benefit from the business at a time the hospitality industry is on its knees as well.

It would soon stop 'influencers' going off to do 'work' in Dubai.

What do you think should be done?

@Ifailed

Because the majority of people still flying in and out of the country are wealthy, powerful and have high-up business connections.

Wealth, power and business are what the Tory's are about.

Just this.

Because rich people can’t keep flying off for holidays abroad and then slumming it when they get back.

I absolutely think we should still adopt this measure. But a lot of the government decisions are driven by keeping people voting for them at the next election

We didn’t need to stop travel

Travel corridors existed only for destinations with lower covid cases than uk

That’s why it made no sense to stop them as people were more at risk of covid here

Because the majority of people still flying in and out of the country are wealthy, powerful and have high-up business connections.

The celebs, high rollers and the Dubhai "influencers" have certainly been given a lot of attention in the MSM and on-line and it seems that has had the desired effect....

In reality a lot of average men and women working in the essential industries have been flying in and out of the country for the last year or so and I certainly doubt many that were travelling travel into the UK would consider themselves as being high paid let alone well connected.