Leader of the Vectis Party, Daryll Pitcher, has written to the Transport Secretary asking him to extend the foreign travel checks to the Isle of Wight in a bid to stop people travelling to the Island for non-permitted reasons.
In his letter to Grant Shapps MP, Mr Pitcher is asking for a declaration form and temperature checks to be implemented on cross-Solent travel.
However, the call comes less than 3 weeks before COVID restrictions are lifted allowing people to travel to and from the Isle of Wight.
In his letter, which has also been sent to Councillor Ian Ward, Mr Pitcher says:
“I note that new Covid-19 regulations have come into force requiring everyone wishing to take foreign travel to complete a declaration form stating the purpose of any trip abroad. This form is to be checked prior to departure to ensure only those with a permitted reason undertake such travel.
“I ask you today to extend this scheme to cover the Isle of Wight until such time as lockdown rules are eased and leisure travel is allowed once more in England. I am also requesting that temperature checks on those travelling be made mandatory.
“Strict border controls have been shown to be effective in limiting the spread of Covid-19 as the Isle of Man, Jersey and New Zealand have all shown. In these cases this control has allowed far greater freedoms for the inhabitants and a return to almost normal life well before other areas. While it is true that such restrictions are not always practicable due to geography there are some areas where it is clearly able to be done.
“The Isle of Wight has suffered through this latest wave of the Covid-19 virus. Some if not all of this is held by many residents to be due to the almost non-existent restrictions on cross Solent travel while the island was in Tier 1 and the mainland was not. The thought of taking a trip to the island to escape the rigours of lockdown was a temptation that many could not resist.
Article continues below this advertisement “One can only assume that the failure of government both local and national to implement measures that would have properly controlled cross Solent travel is down to either incompetence, negligence, apathy or a tacit acceptance that the “Covid Crisis” is not really a crisis.
“A speedy implementation of the need for a declaration and temperature checks for cross Solent travel would reduce the unnecessary risk that the Isle of Wight has been exposed to and should allow for the island to relax the lockdown sooner than elsewhere given that needless external cases will no longer fuel the spread of the virus”.
As long as the island can declare independence from the UK and have full use of the pound as its currency, but make its own laws and install passport control
as that will never happen…
the island is part of the uk and unless there are border controls installed between portsmouth and all other counties around it, then it would amount to discrimination of islanders.
you have’t thought this out have you pitcher – well at least we know you will never be elected on the island with tripe like this.
At least someone is trying to stop the fiasco that happened just before Christmas, well done.
What when islanders travelled to mainland or had family go see them to pass covid onto each other? Just like the rest of the country.
Too little too late springs to mind
In my reply to ‘Fred” I used his phrase from his post of “Without tourism the island will become a place for the poor, bigoted pensioners to come and whinge for a few years before they pop their clogs.” and stated that it was a very agesist and rude comment and I would bet good money that somehow either directly or indirectly that his financila ability to live on the island comes from these very same people he is so disdainful of.
Unfortunately the redacters at the Island Echo would not post it. so, to the red pen brigade how about you remove the disgusting comment from Freds post?
Spot on mate, well said.
I find this comment so short sighted and narrow-minded. I’ll be glad to leave this stifling, cloistered Island. I won’t be rushing back so no need for you to worry about me travelling here uneccessarily.
Havent you wonder where the name came from “corkhead” lol. Nothing sinking in! Ha ha
It’s caulk head, to do with caulking wooden ships on Ryde sands.
I left a few years ago and it was the best decision of my life. Now I just show my mates the news articles and expose how small minded and ignorant islanders are, and how messed up it actually is. The mentality alone is enough to shock them. Hope you are happy off that cess-pit of an island where no one achieves or does much worth talking about.
word has it adam, that the place got better after you left – apparently all those that knew you here, were glad to see the back of you.
i trust you have left, if not then the ferries are still operating and we hope never to see you again.
Lol, plums! Do you really think that would change anything!?
This is three months too late. We should have locked down in that wave but for the summer we don’t need to. Why make that move now?
We will have an amazing trade not seen for thirty years as the Staycationers arrive and for those worried we can exercise the usual caution.
Roll on Summer of 21. I can’t wait.
Odds on another lockdown before the end of the summer?
Never heard of the Vectis Party.
Is this bloke for real we have vaccine now and we really need to get this country going again
Nutter. Didnt want him as Councillor when he was with UKIP, solidified that with this swivel eyed drivel
Watched the Red Funnel webcam and was shocked to see how many cars and caravans are travelling to the Island. What happened to people not travelling nothings being done to check them.
I wonder how many tourists have come across for this weekend ??
To go where? Everywhere is shut and to do what?
To Freshwater Bay, if yesterday was anything to go by…social distancing my a”@e
Outdoors? safe, it has been proved.
So you need a negative COVID test to do a day trip to the mainland? But what if ahead of the return trip you tested positive. If you aren’t allowed home would you have to find a suitable park bench in Portsmouth or Southampton for a couple of weeks until you tested negative again?