The Portuguese ambassador to the UK, Manuel Lobo Antunes, had made a valiant bid to ‘save Portugal’s summer’ in terms of British visitors.
Writing in The Telegraph, he stresses his “great disappointment” over Britain’s decision to “red list” Portugal over quarantine — meaning that anyone arriving in the UK from Portugal is forced into a mandatory 10-day stay in a pre-approved hotel.
Indeed, he terms the measure “disproportionate and unfair.”
But beyond this issue, which he clearly trusts will be reconsidered, Lobo Antunues is much more concerned with the freedom of human mobility.
It is an essential part of the bi-lateral relationship between Portugal and the UK, and, in his view, should be “protected as much as possible”.
“We hope that this summer, we will once again be able to welcome British visitors,” he says.
“It is no secret that over 300,000 Portuguese people of all ages and professions live in the United Kingdom, while Portugal is home to more than 30,000 British citizens and every year plays host to upwards of 2 million tourists.
“This represents a very significant source of revenue for my country” — particularly after the abysmal year the tourism sector has just experienced,” he said in an article that centred on the “far from friendly” way Portugal has been treated by its oldest ally.
The costly hotel quarantine stipulation has been a “hefty if not insurmountable blow” to both Portuguese who live in the UK, and “our many British friends who have chosen to live, study and work in Portugal.”
“Indeed, it was justified on the basis that Portugal’s strong links with Brazil meant that travellers from this country into the UK could potentially bring with them the highly infectious Brazilian variant,” said the ambassador.
But as the ambassador explains, the British decision came at a moment when “not a single case of the Brazilian variant had been confirmed” in Portugal; and when “several other European countries maintained (and still maintain) air links with Brazil or its neighbours.
Those countries have not been ‘red-listed’ by the UK.
Lobo Antunes also says that all Portuguese and British travellers arriving in the UK from Portugal should be able to undergo their quarantine in the warmth and comfort of their own homes.
“Quarantine with a human face,” says Manuel Lobo Antunes. “This is particularly important given the strange times in which we live.”
Original article published by Essential Business
Comments
For once I agree with part of your rant Steve.
Covid has certainly killed common sense, compassion and the ability to think logically in some people. And yes, it has killed many of the working class (although I'm not sure why you have been class selective).
Invest in a mirror, my boy.
Steve the economy will bounce back but will it bring back my cousin who died of Covid a few weeks after being given a clear bill of health at an annual check up.
But don't worry the vaccine is here to fix all of it.
This should help to remove Portugal from the Red list in most countries.
I look forward to business's opening up again, sitting at a café ... a nice coffee or a beer ...
Norman
David is a troll who is seeking attention. Best thing is to ignore him.
2.6 million dead and you've still got your head up your backside. Incredible.
You post some pretty vile stuff on here but this takes the biscuit.
'Here is the news. There is/was no pandemic. There probably was no specific virus, certainly not one identifiable or isolatable as SARS-CoV-2. The deaths were mostly either falsified or accelerated in people expected to die in any event in a matter of weeks or months, these being essential to pumping up the fear factor. The ‘cases’ currently being promoted by the journaliars are the result of manipulation-prone PCR tests, which can be ratcheted up or down depending on the requirements of the controllers.'
https://johnwaters.substack.com/p/a-new-kind-of-stupid