Bordering on contradictory
The clash between communications and policy on borders
When it comes to amber list countries, the government appears to be struggling to generate the same ‘common sense approach’ Shapps has asked of us when deciding whether to travel abroad or not.
Eustice stated that people could travel abroad to see ‘friends and family’. Hart (Welsh Health Secretary) said on Times Radio that amber list countries were for essential travel only, but that ‘some people might think a holiday is essential’. Meanwhile, Health Minister Bethell called foreign travel ‘dangerous’.
What this demonstrates is the consequences of a common sense approach: you get different, often contradictory interpretations. That is what it should be. When seeing these interpretations played out in the form of ministers, it is easy to attack the whole idea of a common sense approach as ‘confusing’. But while ministers should be consistent, people should not be, and if there is one thing that ministers should be consistent on, it is our right to be inconsistent.
Some people will want to travel, some won’t. Ministers should not try and personify these different views, but to encourage people to have their own views.
This is especially the case with amber list countries, which, like red list countries, people are advised not to travel to. However, there is nothing actually stopping them from doing so.
Therefore, people will have to make their own decision on whether or not they wish to travel to an amber list country anyway. Thus it is increasingly important that ministers support people in the act of making this decision, rather than making it more difficult with their inconsistency.
Of course, if the situation in any country changes for the worse, then ministers should change both policy and communications, in order to restrict travel to the country in question. However, they should not attempt to restrict travel to amber list countries via interviews and official guidance, if they are still going to allow people to go. Policy and its communication should always be the same, otherwise people won’t trust either.
Analysis by the Telegraph predicts that up to 270,000 people will fly from Britain to amber list countries by this weekend. This already represents disdain for the official advice and guidance. Thus until the data demands it, the government should align its communications with its policies, to avoid compliance with other rules, such as self isolation on return, being damaged.
However, regardless of the communications policy there is always going to be a need to ensure compliance with self isolating after travelling to an amber list country.
As much as support for both the ‘holiday police’ and a common sense approach to borders can seem contradictory, the latter is entirely dependent on the former. If we end up with more variants, especially those which the vaccines are less effective against, we will not be able to maintain a common sense approach.
It is crucial that people do self isolate on return, so it is necessary that this is checked, even if it does seem a little like, to quote Nick Ferrari, ‘the days of East Germany’.
The fact is, unless one wants the even more East German policy of being stuck in their own country, it’s best to put up with the holiday police for now.
