The Government’s 14-day quarantine policy has started today but looks destined to fail after a leaked Home Office memo revealed that only those giving ludicrously false names such as ‘Mickey Mouse’ or addresses including ‘Buckingham Palace’ are likely to be followed up.
The pledge to fine almost all travellers arriving in the UK £100 if they fail to fill in an online form or £1,000 if they refuse to self-isolate for two weeks will be difficult because there is no method for officials to ensure details are ‘genuine’, the documents says.
Even a spokesman for the Home Office, whose boss Priti Patel has brought in the scheme, admitted to the Daily Telegraph last night that it was ‘very hard to imagine’ how some of the measures would work ‘in practice’.
Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary said today his airline will be flying a full schedule in July and August claiming: ‘The flights are full outbound of the UK. British people are ignoring this quarantine, they know it’s rubbish’.
He added: You could be in Sainsbury’s, you could be on the beach, you could be on the golf course in the unlikely event the Home Office calls you – all they will have is a mobile number.
‘Even the Home Office, Priti Patel’s own office, confirmed it’s unimplementable. It’s bonkers, there’s no scientific evidence for this quarantine, it’s completely ineffective – it’s useless’.
People come into the arrivals lounge in Terminal 2 at Heathrow Airport in London, as new quarantine measures for international arrivals come into force today
Even a spokesman for the Home Office, whose boss Priti Patel has brought in the scheme, admitted to the Daily Telegraph last night that it was ‘very hard to imagine’ how some of the measures would work ‘in practice’ (pictured: Heathrow Airport today)
Thousands of Britons were queuing for hours at the Port of Calais last night in a mad rush to arrive in the UK before the measures began. This morning ferry companies warned that it was ‘very busy’ in both Calais and Dunkirk.
The quarantine regulations must be reviewed every three weeks, with the first taking place by June 29. They could be in place for a year, when the legislation expires, but the Government is expected to scrap it sooner with 500 travel and hospitality businesses set to apply for a judicial review or injunction at the High Court to suspend the policy.
There are also 47 exemptions so far and ‘air bridges’ with other countries are planned to help more people avoid the measures.
Brits rushing to get home before quarantine measures come into effect are facing long queues at Calais tonight
Tens of thousands of people currently arrive in the UK each day from abroad but there are reportedly only 230 tablet computers across all ports and airports for people to fill in their arrival form if they haven’t in advance. The document leaked to the Telegraph warned of huge queues if even one tablet computer is taken out of operation for cleaning for just a few minutes.
And it appears that Border Force checks will be light at Dover but Heathrow passengers face long delays because managers plan to check all arriving passengers.
Transport chiefs lined up last night to attack the Government’s ‘poorly thought-out’ and economically ‘devastating’ travel quarantine which comes into force today.
Heathrow boss John Holland-Kaye warned the scheme would hasten the loss of up to 25,000 jobs and hinder Britain’s ability ‘to fight for our place in the world’.
Channel Tunnel boss Jacques Gounon said the policy had been fraught with problems due to its late introduction last week and accused Ministers of ‘intransigence’.
Meanwhile, furious airline chiefs wrote to Home Secretary Priti Patel demanding that plans for ‘air bridges’ with other countries be drawn up within days.
Quarantine measures are now in place meaning anyone arriving in Britain will need to self-isolate for 14 days.
One Brit, who was returning from Spain on business said: ‘P&O have oversold their tickets and are only taking 200 people on at a time. There are thousands of people sitting in their cars.
‘We got here for 4.30pm, in time for our ferry at 7.30pm, we’ve barely moved since and haven’t even got past border control.
‘I don’t think we’ll be sailing tonight. If we don’t get back by 12am then we will have to go into quarantine, that’s why we tried getting back before then, but we’re one of thousands of Brits sitting in this queue.’
One traveller described the service as a ‘joke’ after being told he would have to travel on a 10pm crossing, after booking his ferry for 2.45pm.
Daniel Bevan gave up on queuing earlier today and is staying in a nearby hotel for the night.
He said: ‘We booked a return with P&O four days ago having made a trip to see my partner’s elderly parents.
‘We arrived for our Sunday night crossing to discover queue stretching back from the ferry to the other side of passport control. Most in the queue were booked on the previous ferry.’
Yesterday P&O ferries apologised to a customer who waited five hours to board his ferry home from Calais.
Nick Phillips wrote on Sunday: ‘Absolutely appalling customer service at Calais today. People who have pre-booked ferries being bumped so that cash bookings on the day can be made. No apology at check in desk, despite 1 hour wait to check in and further 4 hours for ferry.’
The ferry service replied: ‘We are very sorry for the extremely long waiting time in Calais today. ships are operating with reduced capacity to ensure all social distancing measures are adhered to. We have seen large, unpredicted numbers in Calais following government announcements.’
The operator later commented: ‘We sincerely regret that we could not predict the demand from Calais today and that you have had to wait so long for the next available sailing.’
Travellers arriving in the UK will now be required to self-isolate for 14 days under Government measures to guard against a second wave of coronavirus.
All passengers – bar a handful of exemptions – will have to fill out an online locator form giving their contact and travel details, as well as the address of where they will isolate.
People who fail to comply could be fined £1,000 in England, and police will be allowed to use ‘reasonable force’ to make sure they follow the rules.
Border Force officers will carry out checks on arrivals and may refuse entry to a non-resident foreign national who refuses to comply with the regulations.
Failure to complete the locator form will be punishable by a £100 fixed penalty notice.
The plans have been met with strong criticism from opposition parties and some Conservative MPs – as well as the travel industry.
British Airways has begun legal proceedings over what it calls the Government’s ‘unlawful’ quarantine measures.
The Telegraph said a Home Office spokesman admitted it was ‘very hard to imagine’ how some of the planned measures would work in practice.
A leaked Home Office document seen by the paper reportedly said there was no method for officials to ensure a person’s details are ‘genuine’.
P&O tweeted earlier on Sunday to say it had ‘could not predict the demand’ at the French port
Travellers arriving from within the Common Travel Area – which includes Ireland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands – will not need to self-isolate unless they have arrived in the CTA in the last 14 days.
Home Secretary Priti Patel said: ‘We all want to return to normal as quickly as possible. But this cannot be at the expense of lives.
‘The science is clear that if we limit the risk of new cases being brought in from abroad, we can help stop a devastating second wave.
‘That is why the measures coming into force today are necessary. They will help control the virus, protect the NHS and save lives.’
MailOnline has approached P&O for a comment.