Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Politics
Dan Bloom

Your utterly unhelpful guide to travel this summer from 6 different Tory ministers

We're all going on a summer holiday! Wait, no we aren't. Or are we? Maybe a bit.

Foreign travel reopened on Monday - and so did the floodgates of confusion from Tory ministers.

Brits can go to "green list" countries without having to quarantine on their return. But apart from Portugal, almost the entire green list is impractical or impossible to visit.

So reports have emerged of thousands flying out to "amber list" nations - despite the fact they'll have to quarantine at home for 10 days when they get back to the UK.

So what is the government's advice on all this?

You shouldn't go to amber nations at all. But seeing friends and family is okay. But only if it's not a holiday. It has to be essential. But some people think holidays ARE essential. But actually don't travel abroad at all this year - it's "dangerous".

Since Monday 17 May, it's no longer been illegal to make a non-essential journey overseas (Getty Images)

All these are statements that have come from the mouths of Tory ministers in the last 48 hours.

The actual rules are like this.

Since Monday 17 May, it's no longer been illegal to make a non-essential journey overseas.

But all travel, green amber or red, comes with testing on your return which you must pay for.

If you travel to an amber country, you must isolate in your home for 10 days on return. For a red country you must isolate in a £1,750 mandatory hotel.

The government is telling people to, please, not go on holiday to amber nations. But it's not illegal.

And that leaves rather a bit gap in the policy. Which has been filled by a variety of Tory ministers.

At Prime Minister's Questions Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said: "The Government has lost control of the messaging."

He added: "Since the Government loosened travel restrictions, 150 flights a day are going to amber list countries and travel agents are reporting surges in holiday bookings to those countries."

So what have ministers said to calm this all down? Here's their handy handy advice...

'No travel to the amber list'

Matt Hancock got the ball rolling with a hardline statement (REUTERS)

Matt Hancock , Health Secretary, told the Commons: "The official Government advice is very clear that people should not travel to amber or red-list countries or territories.

"People should not travel to amber-list countries for a holiday."

'But you can visit friends and family'

George Eustice was a bit more lenient (Getty Images)

George Eustice , Environment Secretary, told the BBC: "The reason we have the amber list is there will be reasons why people feel they need to travel - either to visit family or indeed to visit friends.

"They can travel to those countries but they then have to observe quarantine when they return and have two tests after returning.

"So people can travel to those areas, yes, but they then have to subject themselves to quarantine requirements on their return."

'OK, so family is all right, but no holidays'

Boris Johnson laid down the law again. Mostly. (Getty Images)

Prime Minister Boris Johnson then intervened, saying: "I think it's very important for people to grasp what an amber list country is: it is not somewhere where you should be going on holiday, let me be very clear about that.

"And if people do go to an amber list country - they absolutely have to for some pressing family or urgent business reason - if they have to go to an amber list country, then please bear in mind that you will have to self-isolate, you'll have to take tests and do your passenger locator form and all the rest of it, but you also have to self-isolate for 10 days when you get back.

"And that period of self-isolation, that period of quarantine, will be enforced with fines of up to £10,000."

The PM later insisted the position was "very clear" and people should only travel to an amber list country "for some extreme circumstance, such as the serious illness of a family member".

"You should not be going to an amber list country on holiday," the Prime Minister told MPs at PMQs.

'Some people might think a holiday IS essential'

Simon Hart says some people think a holiday is essential. We agree Simon, we agree (REUTERS)

Simon Hart, Welsh Secretary, told Times Radio: “Some people might think a holiday is essential. I can think of a quite a lot of people who do think that.

“But it's about common sense we're good at common sense. We're good at common sense as a population, and, and, and I think that, I think it is absolutely clear what Matt and what the PM have in mind here.

“So I don't think we can again create a confusion where none exists.”

'Actually, no, travel is DANGEROUS and you shouldn't go abroad this year at all'

Lord Bethell was the big fun-sponge of the week. But then, his job is making sure people don't die of Covid (BBC)

Lord Bethell, Health Minister, told the House of Lords: "Segregation is unbelievably difficult during travel. It is very difficult to segregate amber list and red list passengers on a plane, train or ferry.

"Within an airport it is very difficult to segregate people, because of the physical proximity.

"That is why travelling is dangerous, why we tell people not to travel and why, when people do travel, we tell them to isolate.

"Travelling is dangerous, and that is not news to us or to the people who get on those planes in the first place.

"The ultimate sanction here is that, particularly as we go into the summer, we tell people: travelling is not for this year. Please stay in this country."

'Business, care and funerals are fine - but no hols'

Skills Minister Gillian Keegan told Times Radio: "What we're saying to people is, the amber list countries are there for a reason.

"They're there so that you can travel for business you can travel for particular situations you have funerals, if there's some specific care issues or that in your family that you know there are some exceptions.

"But holiday, where you have a choice, we're advising people to only go to the green list countries, and of course, there's only 12 of those so most people we anticipate will stay at home."

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.