Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to assist travellers who are required to hotel quarantine as a result of returning to the UK from a covid-19 red list country in the event that those people have insufficient funds to pay the full cost of that quarantine upfront.

Payments can be made using debit or credit cards via the booking portal administered by Corporate Travel Management (CTM). CTM also provides a call centre for travellers having difficulty or need additional assistance in making their booking.

For those who will suffer severe financial hardship as a result of paying for the full cost of managed quarantine in advance, hardship arrangements may be available. This includes repayment plans, where the cost of managed quarantine is paid for in monthly instalments and in exceptional circumstances, fee reductions or waivers may be granted.