SNP MP Angela Crawley has said Tory ‘dithering’ on bringing in tougher border controls to stop the spread of Covid-19 is risking lives – and called on Boris Johnson to follow Scotland’s proposals to bring in supervised quarantine for everyone entering the country.
Yesterday, the Scottish Government announced that they would introduce a comprehensive system of supervised quarantine for all those entering Scotland to minimise the risk of new strains coming into the country.
The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) had said “geographically targeted travel bans” were not enough to stop new coronavirus strains from arriving in the country, and the only way to “get close” to stopping them was to close the borders completely or introduce mandatory hotel quarantine measures for everyone entering the UK.
Despite admitting she wanted to close the borders last year – but failed to act – the Home Secretary abstained on a vote in Parliament on Monday to bring in tighter public health measures at the border. As did Douglas Ross and all six Scottish Tory MPs. In the past few months, Scottish Tory MPs have voted against free school meals, abstained on cuts to Universal Credit, abstained on workers’ rights, abstained on a trade ban for countries committing genocide, and voted for Boris Johnson’s damaging hard Brexit.
Commenting, Angela Crawley MP said:
“The Tories have dithered and delayed over far too many decisions since the start of the pandemic – and it is risking lives. Now they are doing it again over tighter coronavirus border controls – when will they learn?
“SAGE has said that the current approach is not working and the UK government must go further. That means following Scotland’s proposals for a comprehensive system of supervised quarantine. The Scottish Government has followed the science and done what it can within its power but this will not stop new strains coming into Scotland via elsewhere in the UK. We need Westminster to act.
“The SNP has been calling for tougher restrictions since the pandemic began – but our calls were repeatedly ignored in favour of half-baked measures. Thousands – if not millions – have been allowed into the UK in the middle of a pandemic without the necessary health measures in place.
“Countries that have employed effective international quarantine measures are now reaping the rewards of reopening their economies and, most importantly, reducing the unnecessary loss of life.
“It is time for the UK government to follow suit and immediately bring in a system whereby all arrivals to the UK must quarantine – no matter what country they have come from. But we cannot keep waiting for Westminster to act – only with the full powers of independence will the Scottish Government be able to fully protect Scotland’s people and interests.”