Covid-19 Update

Lindsay Hoyle Excerpts
Monday 19th April 2021

(3 years ago)

Commons Chamber
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Lindsay Hoyle Portrait Mr Speaker
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I think we might have to move on.

Edward Leigh Portrait Sir Edward Leigh (Gainsborough) (Con)
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Scott Morrison, the Australian Prime Minister, has just announced that he has no plans to open up his borders. Of course, he is absolutely right. I am speaking—I apologise—completely with the benefit of hindsight, but I am sure everybody would agree that if we had done what Australia had done, we could have opened up our economy months ago. It has had only 910 deaths and only 29,000 infections. What I want to hear from the Secretary of State is that he will resist the very powerful lobbyists from the travel and airline industries and from airports, and that he will be absolutely determined to follow the evidence, not allow unnecessary travel—we do not know what variants are out there in the world—and be really tough with the red list.