Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what recent steps they have taken to repatriate (1) British citizens, and (2) UK residents, overseas during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The UK Government is working with the airline industry and host governments across the world to help bring back British travellers to the UK as part of the plan announced by the Foreign Secretary on 30 March - with up to £75 million available for special charter flights from priority countries, focused on helping the most vulnerable travellers. We have now brought home nearly 31,000 people on 144 flights organised by the Foreign Office from 27 countries and territories

To get as many people back as quickly as possible, we have encouraged and facilitated the use of commercial transport options where these exist. Since the outbreak in Wuhan, we estimate that over 1.3 million people have returned to the UK via commercial routes - the majority supported by our work with airlines and foreign governments to keep vital routes open. Our effort is now focused on supporting the return as quickly and safely as possible of the tens of thousands British nationals remaining overseas and wishing to return.