Shorter quarantine ‘will not help tourism much’

When Guernsey becomes one of the first countries in the world to test a seven-day quarantine period at the beginning of next month, up to 1,376 passengers could be tested on the seventh day after arrival. Though many businesses have been positive about its benefits for islanders, they have said it will not benefit the hospitality industry.

Alan and Aine Sillett run the Duke of Normandie and are joint heads of the Chamber of Commerce’s hospitality group. They were enthusiastic about the scheme regardless.

‘It’s a positive idea,’ said Mrs Sillett.

‘It won’t help tourism grow or help us sell more rooms in the hotel though, as most people would book three or four nights and go island hopping, so to stay for another seven days to still do this would be a gamble and would not be a relaxing holiday.

‘I think it’s more likely to boost public morale.’

Mr and Mrs Sillett said it would help local people see family back in the UK.

‘There are benefits of the scheme for others such as people looking to move here and staff who left to come back,’ added Mr Sillett.

‘Returning to self-isolate for 14 days and taking unpaid leave from work to do so is harder than seven days therefore many people may see their travels as worth it if it’s only seven days.

‘However, with tourism not as it was many places will not be taking back their full staff until next year, we’ve told our workers from overseas that their contract will start in March 2021 instead.’

Mora restaurant general manager Andre Moreira agreed that it might help a number of restaurants, such as Balthazar and the Liberation Group, who could not reopen on 30 May when they were allowed to due to a lack of staff which they filled with overseas workers, but that if a second wave came it would destroy them.

‘For us it won’t make a difference as our staff stayed and our tourist season is not likely to happen, the same for everyone, though it would help some if their returning staff only had to quarantine for seven days instead of 14,’ he said.

‘To be honest, in my opinion, we’re in a good position now as an island, we’re free of Covid-19 and I’d love it to remain that way.

‘Essentially we have to be careful coming out of lockdown. If we had to return to it and businesses had to close for a second time I think it would be very difficult for most of them to reopen again, it would be devastating.’

However, Pingquay co-director Simon Allum said the island needed to bite the bullet at some point.

‘It’s such an unknown,’ he said.

‘We’ve done so well to this point and our best asset is our borders, opening them at any point with any amount of less quarantine measures in place is a risk factor, but we have to break cover sometime.

‘This year’s tourism season is passed and it may not even be up to scale next year and that’s before we think of a second wave, at some point we need to open up the borders more anyway and find out what happens.

‘There will be people who are happy and others that are not, so we’re damned if we do and damned if we don’t.’

Passengers who arrive in Guernsey between 5 and 10 July will still be required to self-isolate, but some will be tested for coronavirus on the seventh day after their arrival.

A negative test result on day seven would see travellers released from the 14-day mandatory self-isolation, and for the following week move into a phase called ‘passive surveillance’.

This means that they should limit their contact with other people, such as avoiding going to restaurants or gatherings.

Today marks 56 consecutive days of no new Covid-19 cases.