who are they?

Thank you varian. I’ve had many kind messages of support from different Gransnetters.

I agree with those who have said the government has been slow and dithered with many decisions. The only one that’s really been rolled out well is the vaccination programme.

Shocking story maddyone but I'm sure not unique.

I hope that all of your family recover well.

Baggs and Gill thank you for get well wishes.

Testing is a problem though isn’t it? I contracted Covid because my elderly mother who we are in a bubble with, fell and was admitted to hospital. She was tested twice 72 hours apart, and was said to be Covid negative. She was discharged home. The next day my husband popped into her flat to do a small job. Mum was feeling ill and the carer had rung for an ambulance. My husband was with Mum for 40 minutes only. He was wearing a mask and so was Mum. But when she arrived at hospital it was found she was actually Covid positive, acquired in hospital. Meanwhile my husband had contracted it from her, and he brought it home to me. I was the only one out of the three who was seriously ill with it. So my point is that testing isn’t always reliable, and that’s a big problem for all countries asking for a Covid negative test before arrival.
My son in law also contracted Covid from his work, he is a medic. Although he was ill and suffering symptoms, the first two tests said negative. Only the third test showed positive. Testing just isn’t reliable enough, quarantine in a hotel, or more rigorously enforced at home is the only answer.

JaneJudge I think that we can safely blame the govt for their delays and u-turns in dealing with lockdowns and quarantine. They have always thought that they should be looking after the economy as well as the people. This has resulted in delays in enacting and enforcing legislation to deal covid.

Furthermore, as has been mentioned on here many times, thousands of people have fallen through the net. At the same time, they have introduced the bounce back loans which are guaranteed by the govt. An accountants' forum that I read has had several stories from accountants with clients who have taken the maximum loan of £50k and then blown it. Also there are already court cases of furlough fraud. The state aid wasn't given sufficient thought before being introduced and there has been time since to review it.

My neighbour has been working abroad throughout, this lock down he has been to Tel Aviv for a week and then went to Holland somewhere. His team were tested before they went, tested on arrival (twice over 3 days I think whilst they stayed in the hotel) and then tested every day before they entered their workplace, then tested before they came home.
Here nothing, they just expected to isolate? test? wtf are they supposed to do?
People aren't the problem, this country is

Even if some of them are in transit, why do our airports not do as others overseas do and have done for some time - insist that everyone has a Covid test before boarding or at least have a certificate to say they are Covid-free.

maddyone People were interviewed yesterday as they were leaving the airport and they had come from Dubai

I know that last year, people were not allowed to even transit in Dubai if they did not have a certificate to say that they had had a negative Covid test. I would think that is still the case.

Thank you, dinahmo.

I agree with and empathise with your anger maddyone. Knowing the person concerned, I have my doubts about her staying isolated and quarantined for 10 days. Your reports of your infection and subsequent severe illness are a useful reminder to us all of just how easy it is to contact covid19 despite following the rules. Best wishes for your continued recovery.

I live quite near Heathrow, don't hear many planes these days, which is lovely!

Reasoned and well informed post Dinahmo

I checked some figures on Heathrow's website. In 2019 80.8 million passengers flew in or out of the airport. That represented nearly 476,000 aircraft movements. It represents an average 221,400 passengers per day. 10 times the number that flew into the UK every day recently.

21,000 people per day is around 60 flights (based on an average of 350 passengers per flight). Considering that flights in and out of Heathrow are normally about 1 per minute that's not a lot of flights.

Dr Hilary said that these people were coming through our airports - one goes through the airport when transiting. So they weren't all leaving the airport. Nor would all those people be flying into Heathrow. It is one of 6 international airports servicing London.There are of course others near our major cities other than London.

Given the above I would have thought that the majority of the 21,000 people per day are likely to have had a good reason for doing so.

Redhead I don't think many of those flying would be expats flying back to the UK, certainly not to live. Sadly I think many will be flying back because of sick and dying family members.

I'm glad you are getting better, maddyone, and hope healing continues apace.

A lot of these flights are half empty and to allow them continued business they are packing cargo. A lot of people that fly into the UK are on route to another destination.
Many newspapers do exaggerate because they are politically driven.
If l could fly out to HK to be with my daughter and her family l to would eventually be one of the people flying back in and l would expect to be quarantined at both ends of my destinations.

People flying home in order to avoid quarantine are the most selfish of the selfish in my opinion. However they are still supposed to quarantine in their own home, but the question is will they?
I came out of hospital three weeks ago after suffering a serious, life threatening Covid infection. I was in hospital for twelve days with my breathing supported by oxygen and taking eight different medications to help me to recover from the Covid pneumonia I was suffering. I had X-rays and a CT scan which showed I have Covid scars left on my lungs. I have to have a further X-ray in another nine weeks to check if the scarring is healing. I was told by my Consultant that the scars may heal, or they may not. I’m currently gradually getting better, slowly day by day, but I realise it will be a long time before I’m back to normal.
So am I angry about all these people arriving from all over the world, possibly bringing in other variants? You bet I am, and I suspect you all would be too if you had had the experience I have had this year.

It is not right to mix up the valid concern about people avoiding quarantine with the assertion that travellers are coming here for no good reason and insinuating that they have no right to be here.

Baggs I know that the UK is a hub for flights, which is probably the reason why the government were reluctant to close our borders. I’ve no idea where they’re all coming from, but it was said yesterday on the BBC news that approximately 21,000 people enter Britain every day. People were interviewed yesterday as they were leaving the airport and they had come from Dubai, the Caribbean, and South Africa. So it appears that they’re coming from all over the world. Does it not worry you that all these people are entering the country, not quarantined (they’re supposed to voluntarily quarantine but do they?) and are potentially bringing in the virus, including new variants? It certainly concerns me.

Well, I know of one family who have flown in from their holiday home in South Africa to avoid hotel quarantine. Do these people really think that the virus knows dates and only infects them after 15th February?

Baggs

That Heathrow is a global hub airport between east and west right across the world is one of the reasons we can't close borders in the same way as, say, New Zealand, which is much more isolated.

When you fly into Heathrow or any other hub airport you go into transit and don't leave the airport.

" "There are 21,000 people coming through our airports every day, they are not being quarantined, they are not being quarantined and they may have the South African variant", he added, and said they may also have other variants."
Dr Hilary Jones on Good Morning Britain, as reported in The Manchester Evening News.
Needless to say, no source is given for this assertion.
www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/good-morning-britains-dr-hilary-19750940

I’d like to know too Baggs

Actually a better comparison would be with a railway station where people have to change trains to get to where they're heading.

Where does the 21,000 a day come from, please?

maddyone, a lot of the number of people who are entering the UK each day, week, month and so on are also leaving it very promptly because the UK, and Heathrow in particular, is an international plane stop (c/f bus stops) where people get off one plane and onto another without leaving the airport.