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This Morning’s Phillip Schofield became embroiled in a heated row with Matthew Wright on Friday’s show as they discussed topics including the end of lockdown and going on holiday amid the restrictions.
The two were joined by Holly Willoughby and Julia Hartley-Brewer to discuss the main topics of the day when things got slightly tense during a discussion over the upcoming ‘Freedom Day’, with Phil arguing the government ‘can’t lock people down’ forever.
With the new rules about travelling to countries on the amber list coming into effect on July 19th, the panel had their say on the matter, with not everyone in agreement.
Row: This Morning’s Phillip Schofield became embroiled in a heated row with Matthew Wright on Friday’s show as they discussed topics including the end of lockdown and going on holiday amid the restrictions
Julia shared similar views to Phil as she told how she can’t wait to go on holiday, with Matthew snapping back: ‘Why are we obsessed with going on holiday in the middle of a global pandemic where we’ve had 200,000 infections in the past seven days.’
He added: ‘I’d like to go away but now doesn’t seem the right time. Good luck to anybody trying.’
As the two argued over whether it was right to go away within a pandemic, Phil then let his own thoughts be known as he questioned how long the government can keep the country locked down.
Referring to Boris Johnson, he said: ‘How long does he think we are prepared to be locked down? I’d say to him the same as you say to these doom and gloom people, “you can’t do it to us anymore.”‘
Chat: The two were joined by Holly Willoughby and Julia Hartley-Brewer to discuss the main topics of the day when things got slightly tense during a discussion over the upcoming ‘Freedom Day’, with Phil arguing the government ‘can’t lock people down’ forever
Matthew then argued back: ‘Unvaccinated people become breeding ground of variants, those variants could one day overcome our vaccine regime and we’ll be back to square one.’
With Phil then hitting back: ‘Every death is terrible, without question. But the numbers are so tiny. More people are dying from flu now.’
Wanting to get his point across, Matthew argued back: ‘Yes but you’ve still got disruptions in businesses, in schools. When people go back…’
Opinion: Julia shared similar views to Phil as she told how she can’t wait to go on holiday, with Matthew snapping back: ‘Why are we obsessed with going on holiday in the middle of a global pandemic’
With Phil then interjecting: ‘You’ve got more disruption if you shut them down!’ while Matthew responded that ‘organised disruption is sometimes better than chaotic disruption’.
On Thursday, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps announced that from so-called ‘Freedom Day’ on July 19, people who have received both doses in the UK can visit amber-list destinations without having to quarantine on their return.
The announcement means quarantine-free holidays to major European destinations such as Greece, Spain and Portugal can get under way for the first time since last year. For the double-jabbed, it also effectively turns 147 destinations currently on the amber list into green-list destinations.
Tense: As the two argued over whether it was right to go away within a pandemic, Phil then let his own thought be known as he questioned how long the government can keep the country locked down
Argument: Matthew then argued back: ‘Unvaccinated people become breeding ground of variants, those variants could one day overcome our vaccine regime and we’ll be back to square one’
Currently, Britons returning from amber-list countries have to self-isolate at home for up to ten days after their return.
MPs and tourism leaders hailed the announcement as ‘a shot in the arm’ for the beleaguered travel sector and UK economy. But they also warned that the cost of tests remains a ‘barrier’ to foreign travel for many families as they urged ministers to drive down prices further.
Announcing the move in the Commons, Mr Shapps warned that the extra checks which come with the overhaul could see huge queues at both foreign and UK borders.
Earlier this year queues of up to seven hours were seen at Heathrow Airport despite passenger numbers being around 15 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.
Update: Transport Secretary Grant Shapps confirmed that new ‘amber list’ rules will kick in from July 19
There was also confusion last night about whether the Foreign Office will fully align its travel advice to the new amber rules.
It currently advises against non-essential travel to most amber destinations, invalidating most insurance policies and putting people off travel. Last night the Foreign Office dropped its advice against non-essential travel to 23 destinations – including France, Greece, the Greek islands, Spain and the US.
But it was unclear if it would be changed for the more than 100 other amber destinations.
Changes: Announcing the move in the Commons, Mr Shapps confirmed that from the so-called ‘Freedom Day’, double-jabbed people can visit amber-list destinations without having to quarantine on their return
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