The British government has announced that it will remove India from the Coronavirus ‘Red’ List, reopening travel visas for Indian citizens.
According to the United Kingdom (UK) announcement, the government has added Bahrain, Qatar and United Arab Emirates (UAE) to the ‘Amber’ list while Pakistan is still on the ‘Red’ list.
Britain has announced that it will remove India from the ‘Red’ list, while a British Member Parliament (MP) expressed surprise and called it a double standard. Bahrain, Qatar and the UAE have been shifted from the red to amber list by the UK but ignored Pakistan.
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British MP for Bradford West, Naz Shah, slammed the British government for keeping Pakistan on the red list and removing India, Qatar, and other countries from it.
“I am surprised that India has moved to the amber list, whilst Pakistan remains on the red list. It is not the first time that this government has shown such callous behaviour when dealing with the quarantine traffic light system,” said Naz Shah.
My Statement: Pakistan remains on Red List whilst India moves to Amber pic.twitter.com/PLV898tCeo
— Naz Shah MP 💙 (@NazShahBfd) August 4, 2021
According to British officials, those coming from Pakistan will have to quarantine and from August 12, those coming from the red list countries will be charged extra money for quarantine. After that the quarantine costs of one adult will increase from GBP 1,750 to GBP 2,285.
However, vaccinated people from the ‘Amber’ List countries do not have to be quarantined when they come to the UK. On the other hand, Naz Shah, strongly condemned the removal of India from the ‘Red’ list.
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Criticizing the British government’s double standards, Naz Shah said that the rate of spread of coronavirus in India is much higher than in Pakistan.
“India’s seven-day infection rate is 20 per 100,000 people and is now on the amber list but Pakistan, whose seven-day infection rate is just 14 per 100,000 people – well below the vast majority of amber list destinations, remains on the red list,” Shah added.
All Parties Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Pakistan chief Yasmin Qureshi said, “I am dismayed at the government’s decision to keep Pakistan on the travel red list whilst removing other countries in the Middle East and South Asia region. Pakistan has no variant of concern reported and cases remain relatively low when compared with India and the UK yet is punished unnecessarily.”
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“These changes point to one thing and one thing only – government politicking. The government has opted to remove India now to best prepare them for trade negotiations and is not based on data nor science.”
Yes I am writing a letter to Shapps as we speak https://t.co/mfGW9PTG8B
— Yasmin Qureshi MP (@YasminQureshiMP) August 4, 2021
Despite Pakistan not having any variants of concern, it remains on the red list.
I have questioned the Govt directly, spoken in parliament, asked parl qs, and coordinated letters, to no avail.
India, where the delta variant originated, is now amber.https://t.co/rQN9YqXuCt
— Yasmin Qureshi MP (@YasminQureshiMP) August 4, 2021
She said, “These travel restrictions are wreaking havoc with people across the United Kingdom. The Pakistani diaspora totals around 1.1mn in the UK and I have been inundated with correspondence which details students unable to access their courses because of punitive and extortionate quarantine costs and children unable to see their often sick parents and grandparents.”
In India, 532 deaths occurred in 24 hours from COVID-19 and the total number exceeded 432,000 while more than 43,000 cases were also reported in 24 hours. India ranks second in the world after the United States (US) in terms of coronavirus cases and the US ranks third in terms of deaths after Brazil, while Pakistan ranks 31st in terms of the total number of cases.
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