Government announces UK travel ban

[odyssey06]

The Government is set to impose a suspension on almost all travel from Britain following fears over the spread of a new strain of Covid-19.

The move was agreed by the three coalition party leaders who held discussions this afternoon, and an announcement is expected this evening.

Officials are still working on the final details of the plan which will include a number of exemptions, including for essential workers and for the delivery of goods into the country.

Consideration is also being given to exempting people who are transiting through Britain on their way home to Ireland from other countries.

48-hour ban on flights from UK over new Covid-19 strain

The Government is to impose a 48-hour ban on flights from Britain following fears over the spread of a new strain of Covid-19, while ferries will be limited to freight travel.

www.rte.ie

 

[odyssey06]

Flights and passenger ferries from Britain to Ireland suspended for 48 hours from midnight

Several countries have stopped travel from the UK as a new strain of coronavirus spreads.

www.thejournal.ie

 

[odyssey06]

To little, too late. 30 flights from U.K. into Dublin today. Most of those passengers are breaking UK restrictions by taking those flights.
How many will self-isolate for 14 days?

I think there must be possibility this is closing the stable door after the horse has bolted... these measures will reduce the numbers incoming but if this new strain is as transmissible as reported it must surely already be on the island of Ireland already.

 

[Leo]

I think there must be possibility this is closing the stable door after the horse has bolted... these measures will reduce the numbers incoming but if this new strain is as transmissible as reported it must surely already be on the island of Ireland already.

Yes, it's been circulating since September, it would be inconceivable that it's not here already.

 

[Sunny]

It is inconceivable that this this strain has not being seen in other countries at this stage. And yet the UK is the only Country that is seemingly claiming that the increase in numbers is down to this new strain. I know it is the cynical side of me but it sounds like the UK might be looking for something to blame because of their own incompetence. Will be interesting to see the science of this. The new strain might have mutated to make it more effective like most viruses do but more transmissible? That's a big claim to make especially since it is around since September but has only become an issue in the past four weeks.

 

[odyssey06]

It is inconceivable that this this strain has not being seen in other countries at this stage. And yet the UK is the only Country that is seemingly claiming that the increase in numbers is down to this new strain. I know it is the cynical side of me but it sounds like the UK might be looking for something to blame because of their own incompetence. Will be interesting to see the science of this. The new strain might have mutated to make it more effective like most viruses do but more transmissible? That's a big claim to make especially since it is around since September but has only become an issue in the past four weeks.

Cynical view - I thought it might be an attempt at justifying \ getting buy in from public on a christmas lockdown.
Paranoid view - There is more to this strain than we've been told and genuinely spooked by it

 

[RedOnion]

I know it is the cynical side of me but it sounds like the UK might be looking for something to blame because of their own incompetence.

You're not the only one with those thoughts.

 

[Paul O Mahoney]

Saying its exclusively a UK strain is probably not true, the UK are the global leaders in genetic sequencing and they have identified it with certainty now.
The effects of this strain are largely unknown and its going to take time to identify these and understand precisely what is different and what needs to be done in combating it.
Many have said that it will not affect the effectiveness of the vaccines and hopefully that's true, however it may also be incorrect as the new strain might have a different protein on its spikes.
Only time will tell once again but I cannot see us out of this or at least have it under control for months into 2021.

The embargoes will be eased but the knock on effects will certainly affect everyone and everything and our lives will not be "normal " for a while yet.

 

[Clamball]

Very disappointed that so many people chose to re-route through Belfast and so many families chose to drive to the North to collect them. They won’t fill out the passenger locator form, and will they self isolate for the next 10 days? Did I see mention that some airlines were offering a shuttle from Belfast to Dublin? Or was that just fake news?

But I can see many from the UK doing a Belfast shuffle to get around not being allowed to fly from the UK. Planning to go skiing, fly to Belfast pop to Dublin and fly from there. Same if they want to go anywhere with flights from Dublin.

 

[odyssey06]

Can probably still be avoid via N Irelamd entry?

All passengers arriving into Ireland will have to provide a negative Covid-19 test prior to departure from this Saturday, 16 January.
The negative test must be taken within 72 hours prior to arrival in Ireland.
Arrivals from Britain and South Africa had already been required to provide a negative test, under measures that were announced last week.

All passengers into Ireland to require negative result

All passengers arriving into Ireland will have to provide a negative Covid-19 test prior to departure from this Saturday, 16 January.

www.rte.ie

 

[mathepac]

But I can see many from the UK doing a Belfast shuffle to get around not being allowed to fly from the UK. Planning to go skiing, fly to Belfast pop to Dublin and fly from there. Same if they want to go anywhere with flights from Dublin.

To be clear then, the thread title should refer to "GB" as NI is still in the UK. Passengers flooded into NI airports and travelled by road to Ireland pre-Christmas and since.

 

[joe sod]

With Boris giving the schedule for the UK reopening and with everything more or less opened by June I think there will be a large outflow from here to Northern Ireland and UK to go on holidays. The big fear of travelling to out of control Covid UK will be gone this Summer as most people will be vaccinated. This really throws down the gauntlet to the government here to speed up the vaccination program and lift the restrictions much faster. The young won't tolerate another Summer of restrictions when they see the UK and NI open for business

 

[Purple]

With Boris giving the schedule for the UK reopening and with everything more or less opened by June I think there will be a large outflow from here to Northern Ireland and UK to go on holidays. The big fear of travelling to out of control Covid UK will be gone this Summer as most people will be vaccinated. This really throws down the gauntlet to the government here to speed up the vaccination program and lift the restrictions much faster. The young won't tolerate another Summer of restrictions when they see the UK and NI open for business

This puts the nonsense about adopting a Zero Covid strategy to bed. It's a stupid idea anyway but since we have an open border with the UK and they are adopting a different policy we can't even attempt to do something which is so contrary to their policy, not without locking down our land border with the UK and that's not possible politically or practically.

 

[Sunny]

The UK are talking about international travel by the end of May. We are talking about coffee shops opening by July.

Only good thing is that I can see the UK making vaccines available to the Republic by the start of the summer....It is in their interest that Ireland and indeed the EU are vaccinated as much as possible. Unless they are happy to continue in their splendid isolation....

 

[joe sod]

But what were the government thinking by announcing such a restrictive regime well into the summer when on the very same day Boris announces that he hopes to have UK fully opened by June. Did they not know that they would look very bad in comparison to UK. Even the tone of the announcements extreme pessimism on our side and optimism from the British

 

[Purple]

I heard an independent TD on the wireless this morning talking about this. I thought he made sense. He said that it would be good to have targets for reopening; them the infection rate is X then Y will happen etc.
The combination of Micheál spineless waffling, Leo's inability to keep his mouth shut, the opposition climbing over each other to be populist, the Government terrified to contradict NPHET, the Union's smacking the Government around the odd time they actually attempt to run the country and RTE radio and TV turning into a 24 hour version of Liveline is depressing.

 

[Sunny]

I heard an independent TD on the wireless this morning talking about this. I thought he made sense. He said that it would be good to have targets for reopening; them the infection rate is X then Y will happen etc.
The combination of Micheál spineless waffling, Leo's inability to keep his mouth shut, the opposition climbing over each other to be populist, the Government terrified to contradict NPHET, the Union's smacking the Government around the odd time they actually attempt to run the country and RTE radio and TV turning into a 24 hour version of Liveline is depressing.

Yeah the tv and radio is just painful at the moment with 'Experts' crawling over themselves to give their opinion about how we are all doomed and politicians being unable to deliver a clear message. They seem to think that if they use the phrase 'light at the end of the tunnel' or 'hope', the population will be fine.....

 

[Paul O Mahoney]

I heard an independent TD on the wireless this morning talking about this. I thought he made sense. He said that it would be good to have targets for reopening; them the infection rate is X then Y will happen etc.
The combination of Micheál spineless waffling, Leo's inability to keep his mouth shut, the opposition climbing over each other to be populist, the Government terrified to contradict NPHET, the Union's smacking the Government around the odd time they actually attempt to run the country and RTE radio and TV turning into a 24 hour version of Liveline is depressing.

God if it were only RTE.
BBC this morning had quite a few " business " people being interviewed for the most part they were happy that they now have clarity, obviously some had a moan but thats human nature.

Our government needs to start giving clarity otherwise people simply have nothing to aim for, like the UK data is key but the data needs to be shared if it is people will understand why the restrictions are what they are, its near impossible to find anything that you could say is 100% right.

 

[EasilyAmused]

This really throws down the gauntlet to the government here to speed up the vaccination program and lift the restrictions much faster.

The government can’t do much without vaccines.
We have the vaccination centres, and they’re fully staffed. We have the patients. We don’t have the vaccines.

There’s a lot of gambling going on.
Trump gambled that Covid was a dose of the sniffles. The US body count exceeds half a million and counting.
Arden gambled that Covid could be lethal and that Zero Covid would work. The NZ body count is 26.
Martin gambled on #SaveChristmas. More died in January of 2021 than all of 2020.
Johnson is gambling on three months versus three weeks between vaccines. If that works out people may ignore the U.K. having the fourth worst death toll on the planet.

 

[Purple]

The government can’t do much without vaccines.
We have the vaccination centres, and they’re fully staffed. We have the patients. We don’t have the vaccines.

I know one GP who said they received a load of vaccines with 24 hours notice and when they had vaccinated as many over 85's as they could they still had loads left. They are now vaccinating friends and family.