A legal challenge which argues coronavirus hotel quarantine is a “fundamental breach of human rights” has been mounted.
People entering the UK from 10 countries in southern Africa must currently spend 10 full days in a quarantine hotel, at a cost of £2,285 for solo travellers.
On Monday, Owen Hancock, 35, and Emily Mennie, 30, were due to enter hotel quarantine on their return from a break in South Africa. They say they were left stranded when the country was added to the UK’s red list due to concerns about the Omicron coronavirus variant.
The couple, from Tooting, London, were visiting Ms Mennie’s family for the first time since the start of the pandemic when their travel plans were thrown into chaos.
When they finally managed to book their journey home, they were told hotel quarantine was full and they would have to reschedule their flights and PCR tests.
They say this added to their financial woes and are now facing a £4,000 credit card bill on their return.
The couple are backing a case brought by law firm PGMBM who on Thursday will seek permission at the High Court for a judicial review of the Government’s mandatory hotel quarantine policy.
Owen and Emily have also set up an online petition, which has attracted more than 40,000 signatures, calling on the government to fund hotel quarantine costs for travellers caught in the same situation when new measures are imposed at short notice.
Source: Skynews