Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan urgently to consider the restoration of licences to fly direct to Sierra Leone.

In responding to the Ebola outbreak, the Government’s first priority is the safety of the British people. The decision not to permit direct scheduled air services between Sierra Leone and the UK is part of the Government’s overall strategy to mitigate the risk of Ebola entering the UK and on this basis, the Government’s strategy remains unchanged at this time.

Should the assessment change sufficiently, for the Government to become content for direct scheduled services to resume, it would then be for the airlines to decide whether and when they wish to operate, subject to them requesting the appropriate operating permission from the relevant authorities.