£75 Million Package Announced To Help People Who Are Stranded Abroad

Families across Southport with loved ones stranded abroad will be reassured as the Government announces a £75 million package to help Britons stuck overseas return home.

The funding will see the Government working in partnership with the airline industry in measures announced by the Foreign Secretary.

Where commercial routes remain feasible airlines – including Virgin, Easyjet, Jet2, and Titan Airways – will be responsible for getting their passengers with pre-booked tickets home. Where commercial routes do not exist, the Government will provide up to £75 million to charter special flights to priority countries in order to bring back UK residents.
Damien commented:

“ I have been contacted by a number of families of people stranded abroad and are understandably worried about their loved ones.

“ This package will come as a relief to those families and will ensure that their relatives can return home at this difficult time.

“ If anyone here in Southport is stranded overseas, or has a family member who is struggling to return home, don’t hesitate to contact me. I will be working on these cases as a priority.”

The Government has announced that special charter flights for countries with no commercial routes will be prioritised according to the number of stranded British travelers and their vulnerability, including an assessment of the local health provision.

Charter flights are already up and running to Ghana and Tunisia, with more countries to be added this week with the aim of bringing people back from countries such as India and South Africa where large numbers of British travelers are stuck and commercial routes are completely suspended.

Commenting, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said:

“ This is a worrying time for many British citizens travelling abroad. We’ve already worked with airlines and governments to enable hundreds of thousands to return home on commercial flights, and we will keep as many of those options open as possible.

“ Where commercial flights are not possible, we will build on the earlier charter flights we organised back from China, Japan, Cuba, Ghana, and Peru. The arrangements agreed today will provide a clearer basis to organise special charter flights where Britons find themselves stranded. Our priority will always be the most vulnerable.”