Asked by
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have for bringing
back British citizens who are stranded overseas as a result of
the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Question was considered in a Virtual Proceeding via video
call.
The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office and
Department for International Development () (Con)
My Lords, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office is leading efforts
to repatriate British travellers and their families who normally
live in the United Kingdom. On 30 March, the Foreign Secretary
committed £75 million for charter flights where commercial routes
are not an option, prioritising the most vulnerable. We have now
brought back more than 31,000 people on 146 flights from 27
countries, organised by the Foreign Office. More than 19,000
British passengers who were aboard 60 cruise ships on 17 March
have all disembarked.
(LD)
My Lords, I thank the noble Lord for all his and the FCO’s work.
However, by early April, the EU had brought home half a million
citizens. Under the EU scheme, Germany had chartered more than
100 flights for 20,000 citizens; the UK had chartered only six
for 1,000 people. Why did the UK not play a full part in what the
EU offered, and are we doing so now? I note that there has just
been an EU flight back from the Gambia.
My Lords, I thank the noble Baroness for her remarks about the
work of the Foreign Office. The teams both in London and in post
have been working around the clock on the repatriation effort. We
have taken the view that it is right to keep commercial flight
options open, which has resulted in a larger number of British
nationals—for example, in Pakistan—returning. Where there have
been no commercial flights, we have then embarked on charter
options. I believe that that that was the right decision and we
have had a successful operation which continues today.
(Con)
I have two friends who have been stranded in South Africa since
late March. Offers of flights by British Airways have been
repeatedly cancelled. Will my noble friend put pressure on BA or
arrange government transport to get them and many others home?
My noble friend is right to raise the important issue of South
Africa. We have run flights from there and we have considered,
and continue to consider, further options. I am aware of cases in
South Africa; my honourable friend the Minister for Africa,
, is prioritising flights in
that respect.
(CB)
My Lords, does the Minister know how many UK citizens employed by
the British Council and based overseas may need to be brought
home as a result of the council’s operations closing down because
they are financially unsustainable as a result of Covid-19? Is he
aware that the British Council risks having to close altogether
unless additional emergency funding can be provided?
I am fully aware of the challenges which have been imposed on
many networks, including the British Council. We have brought
back diplomats and staff of the British Council because of the
health situation or lack of flights in certain parts of the
world. I shall write to the noble Baroness on the specific
numbers.
(Lab)
My Lords, I know that Foreign Office staff and Ministers have
been working hard, but does the Minister agree that the savage
cuts in the Foreign Office’s budget these last 10 years have
contributed to the shambles of returning our citizens? One
operator had to hire a private jet to return 10 Brits stranded in
Turkey because all the Foreign Office could offer was to get them
to Minsk. Why is Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe still so shamefully
stranded in Covid-infested Tehran?
I do not agree with the noble Lord. We have had a massive effort,
and I pay tribute to our network. The noble Lord will recall that
the Prime Minister, as Foreign Secretary, embarked on an
ambitious programme to increase the number of posts, and our
diplomats have served us with great aplomb.
We are acutely aware of the situation of Nazanin
Zaghari-Ratcliffe and continue to lobby for her permanent
release. We have been encouraged by her release on 17 March and
its extension, but we continue to make representations to the
Iranian Government to make her release permanent so that she can
be returned home to the UK and reunited with her family and loved
ones.
(LD)
My Lords, is the Minister aware that some estimates of the number
of British citizens still requiring repatriation are around
300,000? Why do the Government not charter some of the aircraft
parked up all over the south of England, put some money into the
pockets of the airlines and get all of our citizens still abroad
who want to return to the United Kingdom back here once and for
all?
As the noble Lord will be aware, we have opened up registration
procedures in all our posts. For example, in the places that I
cover, including Pakistan, we have returned all British nationals
who were registered and who sought to return. We continue to
operate charter flights. It has been a successful programme, as I
said, across 27 countries, and we continue to monitor the
situation. If British nationals are concerned, they should get in
touch with the embassy or high commission, register their need to
return and we will seek to facilitate it at the earliest
opportunity.
(Non-Afl)
I too thank the Minister for the efforts of Foreign Office staff
around the world. I was stranded after the tsunami, and I well
know what a sterling job they do. My question is about EU
nationals who may be using UK flights to come into the UK in
order to go home. Once quarantine comes in, will those people be
expected to quarantine for 14 days in the UK? Likewise, where EU
carriers are bringing home British nationals into countries which
are imposing quarantines, will British nationals be required to
quarantine in those countries, for example, Spain? At whose
expense would that be?
The noble Baroness raises an important point on repatriation, and
I thank her for her kind remarks. We have worked with EU nations,
our partner countries, as well as with other countries in the
repatriation efforts. We have brought back some of their
citizens, and they have brought back British nationals. On the
proposed introduction of the quarantine in the United Kingdom at
the end of this month, the details are still being determined; I
will of course share them with noble Lords once they have been
made clear. We will make sure that this is communicated to all
nationals returning to the UK or via the UK.
(Con)
My Lords, I congratulate my noble friend the Minister and the
Foreign Office team on what has been a massive effort. Can he
assure me and the country that there are no stranded passengers
on cruise ships who were caught out? Can he explain why it seems
that the Foreign Office advice was slow to change, allowing
cruise ship passengers to depart from the United Kingdom for
often far-flung destinations and leaving them stranded when the
quarantine was reaching its peak?
I thank my noble friend for her kind remarks. On repatriation,
particularly from cruises, rest assured that we have returned all
British nationals, as I said in my original Answer. It has been a
massive exercise, but a successful one. On the travel advice, we
were of course guided by medical advice and ensured that British
nationals could continue to travel until it was necessary to
impose limitations, which the Foreign Secretary did. We continue
to review that travel advice going forward.
(CB)
Following the point raised by the noble Lord, Lord Campbell,
airfields are currently full of aircraft and abundant air staff
are furloughed. What justification exists for the inability to
requisition repatriation capacity and capability at neutral cost
to the taxpayer? Does a global co-ordination unit exist to share
the practicalities of repatriation? If so, from where is it
managed?
The noble Viscount raises two questions. On the point made by him
and the noble Lord, Lord Campbell, anyone who works within the
charter sphere will know that this is not a free-for-all.
Manifests have to be determined and air traffic has to be allowed
for. Equally, airspace in various parts of the world has been
closed, and we have been working under extremely challenging
circumstances. On a central command centre, that has been
operating through the Foreign Office. As I said earlier, we have
seen a very successful repatriation effort.
(Lab)
The Foreign Secretary announced on Monday a special fund for
those stranded, to help with food, accommodation and other
essential items. Yesterday, when I checked the UK Government
website, it still said that assistance was limited to travel. Can
the Minister tell us when and how people will be told about this
new fund? Is it a loan or a grant?
It is a loan which the noble Lord has asked about. It has been
rolled out as a pilot exercise in four countries. We hope to
announce the more general rollout in the coming days and weeks.
