Coronavirus in Scotland: Father and daughter who were first travellers to be put into quarantine now told they can leave Edinburgh hotel due to ‘error’ - The Scotsman

HealthCoronavirus

A father and daughter who were among the first international arrivals to check into one of Scotland's quarantine hotels were told they could leave – just hours later – because of a loophole.

Tuesday, 16th February 2021, 7:25 am

Updated Tuesday, 16th February 2021, 8:23 am

Since Monday, people flying directly into a Scottish airport on international flights have to self-isolate for 10 days in a quarantine hotel room.

Unless exempt, a passenger must pay £1,750 to quarantine in a room at one of six designated hotels in a bid to avoid importation of the virus.

Sign up to our public interest bulletins - get the latest news on the Coronavirus

Sign up to our public interest bulletins - get the latest news on the Coronavirus

However, this does not apply to travellers arriving from within the Common Travel Area, including the UK and Ireland.

On Monday morning, Chun Wong and his eight-year-old daughter Kiernan arrived at Edinburgh Airport from the United States via Dublin, and went straight to a hotel at Edinburgh Airport.

However, Mr Wong told BBC Scotland that on Monday night officials told them a mistake had been made and the pair could self-isolate at home in Fife.

He said: “I received a call from reception saying a gentleman from the airport would like to talk to me.

“He said that since I landed in Dublin first and then got a connecting flight to here, I was not required to quarantine in a hotel.

Chun Wong and his daughter Kiernan, 8, leave Edinburgh airport after entering the country on the first day that travellers flying directly into Scotland on international flights have to self-isolate for 10 days in a quarantine hotel room.

“I still have to quarantine and do the self-testing kit on the second and eighth day, but they said it was an error on their part.”

Mr Wong said he could have checked out of the hotel immediately, but decided to stay the night as it was late.

He said officials were making arrangements to transport him to his home in Fife on Tuesday.

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by coronavirus impacts our advertisers.

If you haven't already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiugFodHRwczovL3d3dy5zY290c21hbi5jb20vaGVhbHRoL2Nvcm9uYXZpcnVzL2Nvcm9uYXZpcnVzLXNjb3RsYW5kLWZhdGhlci1hbmQtZGF1Z2h0ZXItd2hvLXdlcmUtZmlyc3QtdHJhdmVsbGVycy1iZS1wdXQtcXVhcmFudGluZS1ub3ctdG9sZC10aGV5LWNhbi1sZWF2ZS1lZGluYnVyZ2gtaG90ZWwtZHVlLWVycm9yLTMxMzU5MTjSAQA?oc=5

2021-02-16 08:23:00Z
52781369957746