Mandatory hotel quarantine in the UK

[Circumlocutious]

There was the New Zealand thread which touched on this, but I thought it’s helpful to have a more targeted discussion. Mandatory hotel quarantine for all UK arrivals, likely to be signed off on tomorrow.

Twitter thread from FT journalist discussing some of the complex aspects involved:

mobile.twitter.com/SebastianEPayne/status/1353657496716660737

Do you think it’ll ‘work’? (presumably its main purpose is to stop new covid variants from coming in). Why / why not?

I am sure if the quarantine was for all who arrive, the 8k at Heathrow would reduce significantly.

It is only 30 countries, and other than Portugal, South Africa, Brazil and maybe a couple of others, not large numbers travelling to and from there, I would expect.

I know for France at least during the first lockdown, you couldn’t travel into the country unless you were a medical worker or a French resident going home.

FWIW there were other categories of workers allowed in/out of France during lockdown #1 but you are right, it was very restrictive list. As well as the attestation that everybody needed for domestic use to get to the port/airport you needed to carry an international travel attestation, and for many professions a letter from your employer....

The UK has always seemed to be highly resistant to the carrying of similar.

I am sure if the quarantine was for all who arrive, the 8k at Heathrow would reduce significantly.

Even if it reduced by half, that would still be 40,000 people in a 10-day hotel quarantine at any given time. That is not realistic.

I don't think these are surprising numbers coming into the country every day. Australia only accepts 2K per week I believe, but they have a backlog of tens of thousands of people, and one third our population size. If they hadn't capped the numbers, they'd have thousands more coming in each week.

@teezletangler does that mean some Australian citizen haven't been able to return home, or is that just workers.

Do most workers have to quarantine on arrival?

Yes there are Australian citizens who are desperate to return home and have not been able to as the flights are capped. They buy tickets, then the flight is cancelled, they fight to get their money back, the but another ticket etc. The government has put some charter flights on but there are still over 35,000 stuck in various places.
When they ever get a flight they are taken straight to 2 weeks quarantine.

Every arrival into Australia has to do 2 weeks hotel quarantine. Only a few dodgy celebrity exemptions like Nicole Kidman.

Then it seems wrong that the tennis players are allowed to go there, when there are residents wanting to come home.

Then it seems wrong that the tennis players are allowed to go there, when there are residents wanting to come home.

I totally agree. I think it's scandalous that hundreds of people connected to the Australian Open are allowed to come in while citizens around the world have been trying to get home for months. In that respect I do not think Australia have done a good job and it's not a model I would want to see replicated.