Matt Hancock announces punitive measures against border quarantine breaches
Health Secretary, Matt Hancock, has introduced tough new measures against breaches of the Covid-19 quarantine rules at the UK border.
Addressing the House of Commons on Tuesday (February 09), Hancock said UK and Irish residents returning from 33 so-called “red list” countries will be required by law to pay £1,750 to quarantine in select hotels for 10 days.
According to Hancock, the government has booked 4,600 rooms across 16 hotels for arrivals from the 33 listed countries.
The proposed punishments for breaking the new rules are draconian.
Travelers who fail to quarantine in a government-approved hotel for the specified 10 days can be fined up to £10,000.
Meanwhile, travelers arriving at English ports or airports who lie on their passenger locator forms about visiting a red list country can potentially be jailed for up to 10 years.
It is not clear what criteria – in terms of mitigating or aggravating factors – will be used to determine who will be fined and who will have to go to prison.
The new quarantine system will come into force next Monday (February 15).
Although the new rules apply to England, the devolved governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are expected to implement similar measures.
In fact, the Scottish government has gone a step further than the London administration by requiring travelers from all countries – not just those on the red list – to quarantine in hotels on arrival.
For its part, the Welsh government has called for a “five nations” approach to the developing crisis, involving the whole of the UK and the Republic of Ireland.
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