Attitudes making you think differently of people.

[Flatdisco]

A relative sent me a petition and asked me to sign it, asking the government give free PCR tests for travel. In my opinion if people want to travel in a pandemic they should have to pay for the additional precautions. I have no intention of travelling abroad this year so I don't know the cost of the tests. But I have heard something on radio 4 recently about companies being accused of monopolising and over charging. So I can imagine they are expensive.

I also think covid has cost us loads as a country, quite rightly. So I don't think the beat use of resources is to pay for tests so people can have holidays abroad.

Luckily all my family are on the same page re vaccination (all double vaxxed). This is the first time I've come up against something and been like really? How can you think that. I feel like it's quite a selfish point of view and I'm a bit disappointed in the family member tbh. I know it's only a petition, it's not like they've caught covid from being anti vaxx. So really not a big deal, but it does change how I view them

I haven't replied and probably won't. So just having a little moan, but it got me thinking there must be loads of people who have been surprised by loved ones attitudes to covid and the resulting restrictions. Anyone like to share similar experiences so I don't feel it's just me!

I never went on holiday when I was a child so I'm making up for it now!

*You knew children whose summer holidays were spent at home.

This must be the most mn post ice ever read*
I thought the same

I never went on holiday when I was a child so I'm making up for it now!

Same - well we did holiday within the U.K. but not abroad until I was 15, and our U.K. holidays were rubbish. I’m sure this also partly explains why I ended up studying Modern Languages at university - I was desperate for broader horizons. My brother now lives in Canada, so he obviously felt the same! A big part of our future travel costs will be to visit him.

I’ve already had a holiday abroad this summer. It was fantastic and great to mix with people from lots of other countries again. The cost of the tests was annoying but only a small fraction of the holiday cost.

I get your point OP. I got that petition but didn't sign it. I might have signed one about the monopoly situation on testing for those traveling back to Scotland but they reduced price of Day2 test from £88 to £68 and apparently will open up providers list from September.

It's just not a priority at the minute and I would think less of anyone who sent me it ( not sure why I got it).

If anything the pandemic has made me realise just how much I love to travel and I can't wait to go abroad again. We haven't gone this year but will defs be going next year. Cannot wait to take my little girl to Disneyland too!

I think you’re being unreasonable. Me and my lot are all double vaxxed. I haven’t been abroad for 20 years and we usually do caravan holidays in the UK because that’s all we can afford.

We have booked Majorca for May half term next year as my husband was made redundant and we were able too. It’s still cost us an absolute fortune but we feel grateful we can finally take the kids on an aeroplane just for the experience too.

Adding extra hundreds of pounds for PCR tests etc is just money making and greedy. But that’s just my opinion.

@worriedatthemoment

Tests shouldn't be free for travel as there is no such thing as free , someone picks uo the bill. But they should be capped . If you need an injection for a foreign country its not done on the nhs

This.

People should go abroad if they wish and if the government is insisting on certain tests then they need to be responsible for making sure that we are not being taken advantage of but the government / tax payer should NOT be subsiding this.

@Chillychangchoo

I think you’re being unreasonable. Me and my lot are all double vaxxed. I haven’t been abroad for 20 years and we usually do caravan holidays in the UK because that’s all we can afford.

We have booked Majorca for May half term next year as my husband was made redundant and we were able too. It’s still cost us an absolute fortune but we feel grateful we can finally take the kids on an aeroplane just for the experience too.

Adding extra hundreds of pounds for PCR tests etc is just money making and greedy. But that’s just my opinion.

But that’s not what the OP is saying is it? They aren’t against tests being cheaper because it seems they are presently too expensive and someone is making a huge profit. It’s just that the tax payer shouldn’t be footing the bill - ie the bill should be smaller and more reasonable but it should be footed by the person who goes on holiday.

I thought the OP was more about these views making you feel differently about people. In this case, not really, it’s just a difference of opinion and nothing to get outraged about.

I distance myself from people who say things like “women who get pregnant during a pandemic have only got themselves to blame”. I minimise my time spent with people who think that finding wearing a mask difficult (whether you wear one or not) makes you feeble and pathetic. I don’t really understand people who think we should all be locked down over Christmas just so that they don’t have to spend it with family they don’t like.

This particular instance in the OP, that wouldn’t really register as anything more than an “agree to disagree” thing and it wouldn’t impinge on my relationship with them at all.

I thought the OP was more about these views making you feel differently about people

Me too and yes the past year or so has certainly done that. I put it down to how politicised this virus has become and mixing politics and friendships rarely goes well.

On the subject of PCR’s for travel, I’m not sure it even makes it onto my list of what needs intervention economically in this country. On the face of it though we’re a capitalist society and it’s not the general public’s responsibility to pick up the costs of an individuals travel requirement I’m not sure it’s the governments place to tell companies what they can and can’t charge. Supply/demand and all that. It’s not like one company has a monopoly on private PCR tests is it?

Nannyandjohns response is hilarious

Little England at its finest.

Probably someone who would benefit from visiting new far-flung places and broadening their horizon

Nanny and John you have excelled yourself on this thread with your post. I mean what are you thinking?

I have been surprised by a few people during the course of this pandemic, maybe they always had the traits and they just went unnoticed or maybe it highlighted them.
I don’t agree the tests should be free, that just means other tax payers fund them and why should they do that?
The more travel the more routes the virus has to spread via.

Where I live under 12 don’t need a test
12/17 do need a test (funny how this matches the next possible vaccine roll out)
Double jabbed no test and no quarantine
Unvaccinated - test on arrival if negative are released - return for day 6 test

So this appears to be a tax on the unvaccinated - fair and children - not fair as ultimately this is a tax on children

Cornetto ninja

"On the subject of PCR’s for travel, I’m not sure it even makes it onto my list of what needs intervention economically in this country. On the face of it though we’re a capitalist society and it’s not the general public’s responsibility to pick up the costs of an individuals travel requirement I’m not sure it’s the governments place to tell companies what they can and can’t charge. Supply/demand and all that. It’s not like one company has a monopoly on private PCR tests is it?"

Hmm, the government have ombudsman services and regulatory bodies on other products etc. Why should these companies get away with charging what they like?

I think whether the tests are free or not isn't the point.

If you are fully vaccinated you shouldn't need them at all.

I can go to Germany without a test because I am fully vaccinated. But I can't come back into the UK without two tests. I don't think the virus knows which direction I am travelling in, it's a nonsensical policy.

@lockdownmadnessdotcom

I think whether the tests are free or not isn't the point.

If you are fully vaccinated you shouldn't need them at all.

I can go to Germany without a test because I am fully vaccinated. But I can't come back into the UK without two tests. I don't think the virus knows which direction I am travelling in, it's a nonsensical policy.

I agree. I have just travelled from Germany to the UK and needed two tests (before flight and day 2), none needed on return as double vaxxed. Makes no sense when you think which country has the higher incidence rate. It’s a licence to print money for the companies doing testing, one of which currently has a monopoly in Scotland.

Yep that’s the key think for me. We are repeatedly being told that we need to learn to live with covid yet we are required to test to enter our own country. Whilst people can go to festivals and nightclubs in England.

Where is the logic? It’s ridiculous IMO.