Foreign holidays are currently not allowed under the “stay at home” rule – which ends on Monday – but the ban on leaving the UK from this time will become a specific law.
It will be backed up by the threat of the £5,000 fine.
This proposed new law states that no one can “leave England to travel to a destination outside the United Kingdom, or travel to, or be present at, an embarkation point for the purpose of travelling from there to a destination outside the United Kingdom” without a reasonable excuse.
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A £200 fixed penalty notice can already be issued to those who fail to fill in a travel declaration form – which includes personal details and reason for travel – for those leaving the UK.
There are a number of exemptions to the ban, which are travel for:
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Work
Study
Legal obligations or to vote
Moving, selling or renting property
Childcare reasons or to be present at a birth
Visiting a dying relative or close friend
Attending a funeral
Getting married or attending the wedding of a close relative
Medical appointments
Escaping a risk of harm
The ban does not apply to those travelling to the common travel area of the Channel Islands, Isle of Man and the Republic of Ireland – unless that is not the final destination.
Under the current roadmap for easing restrictions, the earliest date that people in England could go abroad for a holiday would be 17th May, however, another surge in coronavirus (COVID-19) cases in continental Europe, as well as the slow rollout of vaccines across Europe, has sadly cast a somewhat of a doubt on the resumption of foreign travel.
Although, if approved, the new travel laws won’t expire until 30th June, during an appearance on Sky News this morning, Health Secretary Matt Hancock suggested that foreign holidays could be allowed before that date.
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"It's been an incredibly difficult year, probably the hardest in a generation."
As the UK marks one year since the first lockdown, Health Secretary Matt Hancock says "the hope is that we now have a route out of this" because of the vaccination rollout.https://t.co/G0p0E4zsqtpic.twitter.com/6pfdEdpvoC
Mr Hancock said: “The questions of whether people will be able to travel abroad this summer are going to be addressed by the Global Travel Taskforce, which is reporting around 12 April.
“The roadmap sets out the earliest date by which we will allow for international travel – without one of the clear reasons you need now – is 17 May [and] that has not changed. The way we’re putting that into law is as part of these roadmap regulations that will be voted on on Thursday.
“They come to an end as a whole at the end of June.
“But that doesn’t change the timings for these questions on international travel.”
He did however go on to warn that it was currently “too early to say” what the taskforce would decide on foreign holidays, due to the recent surge in COVID-19 infections across Europe, adding: “The reason for that is we are seeing this third wave rising in some parts of Europe and we’re also seeing new variants.
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“It is very important we protect the progress we’ve been able to make here in the UK.”
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For the latest information, guidance and support during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in the UK, please do refer to official sources at gov.uk/coronavirus.
#StayHome
Featured Image Credit – Pixnio
News
Two Trafford towns are set to see dozens of new EV charging points installed imminently
Danny Jones
Two big towns on the border of Greater Manchester and Cheshire are set to see a fresh batch of electric vehicle (EV) charging points installed throughout their streets by Trafford Council very soon.
Local authorities have teamed up with engineering and infrastructure company Amey to roll out a series of new EV charging stations across Trafford, starting with Altrincham and Hale.
Dating all the way back to 2020, the collaboration with Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM), the brand was tasked with helping improve sustainable travel across the area as the government body’s electric vehicle charging suppliers.
Steady improvements have been made across the 10 boroughs, but this particular update marks one of the biggest network upgrades that the likes of Alty and Hale have seen for some time.
Good news – we are thrilled to announce the installation of our first public EV charge points in collaboration with @TraffordCouncil.
Issuing a statement on Wednesday, 17 September, the firm – which specialises in managing, designing and maintaining complex facilities and transport infrastructure across the country – announced that they will “start the installation of EV charging points in Trafford in the coming weeks.”
It is expected that “up to 100 new public charges” will be integrated throughout the respective town centres and residential streets as the suburbs continues to push towards its sustainability goals.
As per Altrincham Today, Amey account director Anna Gornall said: “We’re excited to launch our first EV charge points in Trafford, working in partnership with Trafford Council (TC) to make electric vehicle charging more accessible to local communities.
“As the UK’s leading provider of energy transition and decarbonisation solutions, we’re well placed to use our existing expertise and resources to support TC in delivering a holistic public EV charging network for local communities.
“We’re helping residents make the switch, so everyone can plug in and power a greener Trafford.”
The country at large has various carbon-free initiatives, including the aspiration of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050; the electoral ward of Trafford itself continues to thrive in this field, having recently won environmental accolades, including 12 ‘Green Flag Awards’ this past July.
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Peter Anderson, Managing Director of Transport Infrastructure at Amey, commented: “This is a pivotal moment in Amey’s energy transition strategy. By leveraging our extensive experience in whole lifecycle asset management, strong partnerships, and innovative solutions, we can deliver value for both our clients and members of the public who will use Amey’s electric vehicle charge points.
“Working with Trafford Council, we are making electric vehicle charging more accessible to local communities and helping residents make the switch to EVs.
“Amey is well-positioned to support emerging opportunities within this landscape, and we are delighted to be working with Trafford and other local authorities to provide the public EV infrastructure needed to achieve the government’s transition to net zero.”
As for Trafford Council, Corporate Director of Place, Richard Roe, went on to add: “We are delighted to be working with Amey on this project to bring more and better charging options to the people of Trafford.
“This is an extension to the current EV charging options in the borough and is great news for committed EV owners and those who are thinking about going electric.”
Featured Images — Publicity pictures (via Amey Ltd)
News
Further disruption expected as more bus strikes announced across Greater Manchester
Emily Sergeant
Further disruption is expected as even more bus strikes have been announced across Greater Manchester this autumn.
It comes after the strikes set to place this month from 19 to 22 September were announced a couple of weeks back, and now a second round will take place towards the end of this month and going into early October.
In case this is the first you’re hearing of the upcoming industrial action, 2,000 workers who are employed by Stagecoach, Metroline Manchester, and First Bus Rochdale – all of which are firms among those that make up the bus part of the Bee Network – are due to walk out in a co-ordinated strike amid an ongoing pay dispute.
Unite the Union says all the firms are ‘highly profitable’ and it’s therefore ‘disappointing’ that workers are being denied a fair wage.
More strikes have been announced on the Bee Network this month / Credit: TfGM
At Stagecoach, around 1,000 drivers based across the Oldham, Stockport, and Middleton depots have rejected a pay offer of 3.5%, and 1,000 Metroline Manchester members will also do the same after turning down an ‘unsatisfactory’ below-inflation pay offer.
Workers at both Metroline and Stagecoach believe the offer doesn’t address years of low pay they’ve recieved, especially given the ongoing cost of living crisis.
Then, over at First Bus Rochdale, 110 members have rejected this year’s pay offer of 6%, as they feel this does not go far enough to address the fact they’ve had years of being paid less than their counterparts at other companies, and are still the lowest paid in the region.
Stagecoach, Metroline, and First Bus Rochdale, part of First Group PLC, are all firms which have seen a rise in profits in recent years.
2,000 drivers are set to stage strike action over two different periods / Credit: TfGM
The second round of strikes will now take place from from 30 September to 2 October.
Speaking ahead of both sets of upcoming strikes, Unite General Secretary, Sharon Graham, said: “These companies are very profitable but are putting greed over their hardworking members of staff.
“Further strike action will be extremely disruptive, however this is a dispute entirely of the bus companies’ making and they could solve it easily by coming back with a better deal.
“Our members involved in the dispute have Unite’s complete support.”
Unite Regional Officer, Colin Hayden, added: “The strikes this week as well as the further action we have called will cause travel chaos in Greater Manchester. However, it is entirely the fault of the employers involved, who have failed to address the issue of low pay and reward their staff accordingly.
The Manc -
23rd March 2021 
