Concerns as Clipper ferry passengers go untested

Tuesday 07 July 2020

The government is reviewing its harbour testing regime after concerns were raised by passengers arriving on the Commodore Clipper from Portsmouth last night who were not tested for covid-19 upon arrival.

The small number of Clipper passengers reportedly arrived just as the final few from the previous sailing from Poole were being tested.

However, while all those arriving from Poole were swabbed, those arriving from Portsmouth were not.

In a post widely shared on Facebook, one “furious” passenger said that the testing facility appeared to have closed while he was waiting in a queue of cars.

“…We saw them but whilst we were waiting in the queue (only about 10 cars), we get notice from Immigration to say they had gone home!!!!! What planet are these people on!" the post read.

"We wore masks all day on the Clipper, everyone self-distanced and obeyed the absolutely brilliant Condor crew's rules and arrive to this fiasco!"

Pictured: The widely-shared social media post.

Express contacted the government last night for an explanation of what happened.

It is yet to respond with an official statement, but Express understands that the issue arose because the harbour testing centre’s timetable is based around the passenger-only vessels, whereas the Clipper is predominantly freight.

Those arriving on the Clipper are due to be tested this morning. 

Express understands that the government is now reviewing how to enhance its harbour testing regime in response to concerns.

The latest covid-19 statistics are yet to be released, but numbers yesterday rose to six.

All six showed no symptoms. One arrived by sea over the weekend, while another arrived by air.