I'd say it's more of an arbirary move to make up for the fact that they let a tonne of people waltz in from Italy with covid-19 without seemingly having a care in the world about it at the time.

If they wanted to trap us into spending our money on the UK highstreet, that might have been a good time to do it rather than now.

The tour operator I use will not allow you to travel without travel insurance. Some people have been in hospital for months with the virus that would cost a fortune.

I could self isolate for 2 weeks it would not be a problem. However if you fall seriously ill abroad would you get the medical treatment you need?

This is the FO statement on Indonesia

""The standard of local medical care can be poor and some medical tests can’t be done reliably. ""

Many of these countries also have their own quarantine regulations so when you arrive you are locked down for 14 days.

Anyway it's a moving target as people coming back from France have found.

I could take a chance but I don't see the point far to many indeterminable's.

One more point

Good development.

[Link]

COYP

There is always a way the key words are "essential travel". Holidays and sightseeing are supposed to be fun a joy what is the point if you are risking your health on a plane and when you get to your destination you find most of the attractions are closed. I don't do beach holidays I like to go to museums galleries temples etc.

I was going to visit Oxford for a couple of days but most of the major stuff is closed.

Don't get me wrong I know it's selfish when people are dying but you can't stop feeling the way you do.

The sooner we have a vaccine the better for everyone.

One more point

I’m not so sure, we have looked into it and cannot find any that isn’t dependent on the FO declarations of whether travel is essential or not.

A months stay in a Spanish hospital cost a mate of mine £18k because he couldn’t be bothered to renew his insurance. Admittedly he broke his pelvis and needed some specialist surgery, but it can soon mount up.

We are not minted. Yes we have a place abroad and we try and spend up to 6 months a year there, it is not much different to being at home, just cheaper to live eat and drink and nicer weather. What I won’t do is expose ourselves to risk if it’s not covered. Covid would not impact my decision at all because where we go has a tiny number of cases. In fact I would say my biggest concern would probably be the journey there and back.

I think the only democratic country that got it right is New Zealand and even there early on Jacinda got plenty of stick from the press and public, they soon shut up when they saw the devastation that was happening across the world. Now of course she is bullet proof.

New Zealand isn't a perfect model for us though for 2 reasons:

1. Not many people per square mile, Scotland is probably the equivalent.

2. It is not a transport hub. Each day millions of people were coming and going in the UK many just passing through. You don't go to New Zealand on your way to somewhere else it is more or less the end of the line so it was easier for them to close their borders.

One more point