Australians stranded in the United Kingdom after Singapore blocked travellers from the country are pleading with the government to put on more repatriation flights to help them escape the rising number of cases in the UK.
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The number of COVID-19 cases in the UK leapt to more than 38,000 on Tuesday, with more countries banning travellers from the country in reaction to the recently-detected more transmissible strain of the virus.
In a blow for the approximately 5000 Australians stranded in the UK and hoping to come home, the decision by the Singaporean government to ban travellers from transiting through the airport has closed off one of the key routes home.
Selina Muller's 29-year-old son Mitch was due to fly home with Singapore Airlines in the coming days, but their plans were thrown into chaos.
"We found another flight this morning, and had to wake him up in the middle of the night and say 'do you want to do this?' and he was straight onto it," Ms Muller said.
But since spending $12,000 to get Mitch on an alternative flight with another airline, he has been waitlisted, Ms Muller said, in another setback.
Based in Leicester for the past three years, Ms Muller said Mitch had been trying to get home to Perth for six months, and his mental health was deteriorating under the constant lockdowns.
"It's relentless, it's hard to imagine," she said.
"It's just horrendous over there, it's not getting better, it's literally getting worse."
The family have been in contact with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in recent months, but hadn't been registered for the repatriation flights because of the booking with Singapore Airlines.
Ms Muller said she was thinking of the many others who hadn't been able to book alternative flights.
"If DFAT can reach and help those poor people who who are stranded desperate to get home," she said, calling for the government to take more action.
Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne said the department's diplomatic network was assisting Australians affected by the flight restrictions.
"This includes help to rebook on alternative flights, including Australian Government facilitated flights," she said.
"We are facilitating flights from a range of countries including the UK. Flights from London are due to arrive in Darwin on 30 December and 16 January."
Those passengers will be required to undergo 14 days of mandatory quarantine at the Howard Springs facility.
Senator Payne said the government would consider running more facilitated flights for Australians whose flights have been cancelled due to the border closures.
Singapore Airlines had been operating daily flights from the UK to Singapore, and around 30 flights a week to Australia, flying into the main capital cities.
While the flights to Australia will continue, Australians coming from the UK won't be on them.
Other airlines are flying between the UK and Australia, but with the number of passengers limited on each flight due to caps on the number of people in hotel quarantine in each state, those flights are climbing to prices even more out of reach for people desperate to come home.
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A spokesman for Singapore Airlines said the company was exploring all avenues for COVID-safe travel for customers wanting to get from the UK to Australia and New Zealand.
"We support the Singapore Government's efforts in protecting the community and will continue to work with them and all relevant authorities to ensure any solution to allow travel from the UK to Australia or New Zealand continues to have the health and safety of our customers, crew and the communities we operate to as the highest priority," he said.
- Australians overseas and in need of assistance can contact the 24/7 DFAT Emergency number on +61 2 6261 3305 or contact the closest Australian Embassy or Consulate.