Rescuing standed Brits

We can’t just abandon them though, can we, whatever the circumstances? Yes, some have been foolhardy, but many more are stuck through no fault of their own and their families must be worried sick. I’m sure they won’t object to paying a reasonable contribution towards the cost.

Sorry Urmstongran March 10th was a Tuesday - when we locked down in Italy.

If they were silly enough not to come back sooner or, worse, go when there was trouble brewing, I don't think we should waste money getting them home.

My SiLs parents are stuck in Australia and it looks like they will be staying there for the duration. They had gone to stay with their youngest son and his new wife. I'm not sure why they didn't come back when they could. Maybe this whole thing took them by surprise. Anyway they will be staying with their son and DiL in their small flat. They are a strange pair and really not easy to get on. Added to that, he is the world's worst hypochondriac and always thinks he has some dreadful illness or other, despite umpteen tests proving he is fit and well. It will certainly test the relationship of their DS and his wife. As to them not coming home just yet? Well, as my DD says, every cloud has a silver lining!!

Ok. We saw what was happening in January in China. Then in other countries. My husband said that it was pretty clear to anybody that it would spread around the world. We cancelled our holiday then. As he said, a holiday is non essential, the money will be gone but we can at least be in our home when everything goes pear shaped.

Surely once they are back they will be billed for the journey home. They would have had to pay for a commercial flight if they were still available. How many will grumble they have had their trip cut short,!

I had a flight booked to Australia, for the end of April, for the birth of my GC. When I told people, several weeks ago, that it was beginning to look like flights would be cancelled a lot of them told me to bring my flight forward and get over their as fast as I could!
Although I have several family members over there to accommodate me I didn’t follow their advice, luckily. What if I was told to pack myself off back home? Also, they have enough to worry about, without an elderly mother cluttering up the place. I just hope that I manage to get there before the baby grows out of the clothes I bought for him!

2 weeks ago there were still lists published by the NHS of the risky countries. Other countries were still officially considered safe to travel to/from

China was in lock down in February. The WHO announced a pandemic at the beginning of March anyone who set out after that date was a bit stupid. But they will have to be brought home. In the past if you were repatriated by the government for any reason they confiscated your passport until you repaid the cost. I hope that rule will apply now.

As long as they all go into isolation somewhere I don't care

Well GPs do!
They are overstretched covering their normal registered patients and cant cope right now with temporary registrations!

As long as they all go into isolation somewhere I don't care, as it's this steady trickle of those who are stranded and brought back that doesn't help matters.
There are still Brits on cruise ships dotted around.

As I said before, if people chose to travel it was a bad decision which cannot be changed and they should be brought home, put in isolation and then pay at a later date.

As for not knowing how things bad things would become - if that were the case why was there so much panic buying, before the restrictions were brought in.

What about the air crew. Front line or what?

Tui has apparently flown all of their customers home. Themselves.

A bit of good news

As soon as they announced that a Chinese student had developed the virus in this country, I knew what the out come would be. I have not mixed with anyone outside of family since the beginning of February and not seen family members since 23rd February.
Unbelievable that people would worry about losing the cost of a holiday, health and safety is more important.

Have airlines and tour companies not already been paid for these flights

In a lot of cases yes!
And people who purchased sooner flights that were cancelled have not yet been refunded.

Some people have already paid 3/4 times over to get home!
The airlines should not be charging them OR the government anything to get them home at this point. They have taken enough money for non honoured flights

well ,, we are a judgmental lot , aren`t we? human beings I mean, yes, I have had these thoughts,, why, why should the taxpayer etc.

but the thought I am stuck with is, all these Brits coming back, what about the visitors (not allowed to say foreigners else I will be judged racist) what other word, what about the non Brits here, are they demanding for their countries to take them back? just wondering... where a lot of these returning Brits will be accomodated? just asking, trying not to judge.

Have airlines and tour companies not already been paid for these flights. They should be made to pay some mopney towards them.

My friend went out on a back packing holiday to Malaya in January and was due to fly back home today. There were very few cases of CV there and she felt safe to carry on with her holiday but then there was a religious festival where 15,000 people gathered. When they all went back to their homes, the virus spread very quickly to all parts of the country and they are now in a very strict lockdown.
She's been trying to get an earlier flight for the last couple of weeks but is stuck in Kuala Lumpur. The last flights out of the country were over £1500 and were sold in minutes. My friend has had to rent a room and will have to wait it out for as long as her money lasts.

There are brits abroad being isolated in basically prisons in countries that are doing enforced isolation of all foreigners.
There are brits abroad at risk of violence where locals see it a a "foreigner disease"

I do not think cruise ship passengers win top trumps on desperation to get home

The only Brits who should be repatriated are those stuck on cruise liners as long as they are allowed to dock . To be stuck in an inside cabin for weeks would make me want to kill myself....they could all be then taken to the places designated to be put into isolation

It still wasnt clear whether or not it WOULD be a pandemic or not back then.

The UK still thought it could contain it just by isolating travellers from countries from the risk list. Other countries were still listed as safe!

This subject drives my DH mad and has him shouting at the telly. He feels it is deeply unfair of people to put this strain on the nation's resources, through their own bad decisions, at a time when every penny is needed. I am inclined to agree.

Countries may have gone into lockdown at different times, and our government may only have ordered it a week ago, but anyone with a smattering of intelligence could see what was coming. It is a pandemic - did they think that it would all just go away? Do people always have to be told "Don't do this" or can they make rational decisions?

I have a friend who is a dear, good-hearted sort but an absolute twit where common sense is concerned. She was still planning on going away on holiday, despite the worsening situation. I warned her not to go but she would not listen. She would be stuck there now if the travel company had not cancelled her holiday.

I think that a lot of people in the U.K. did not see this coming, far too wrapped up in their own lives.
Thats not fair
A lot of people made the decision to follow official advice only and not join in with the panic buying etc.

It was a reasonable choice at the time

Nobody knew then that the panic buyers would be vindicated

Granny the 18th was less than two weeks ago!

We all get it now but it really wasnt clear back then AND people were still being berrated for "panicing" and buying gel or trying to stock up..