Brits in Tobago threatened by armed police as stranded tourists offered loans to get home

Riot police wielding machine guns confronted a group of British tourists after a dispute at their five-star Caribbean hotel – as they were left afraid they would not be allowed home. 

The holidaymakers in Tobago – most of whom are over 60 – say they were falsely accused of ‘accosting’ the hotel manager and threatened with being thrown out after complaining about conditions. 

Shortly after winning the right for the airport to be re-opened for a mercy trip home, they were told they would be reported to the British High Commissioner and banned from leaving. 

They were warned they would be declared a ‘flight risk’ – a legal term for someone accused of a crime and thought likely to flee the country before trial. 

The extraordinary row involved a group of 20 Britons on a ten-day holiday booked with Stoke-on-Trent travel firm Blue Bay. 

They faced being stranded after the local airports were closed on Sunday to curb the spread of Covid-19, three days before they were due to jet home. 

They say they were threatened with being evicted from their hotel and sworn at after protesting at being served fried eggs on top of cakes for their food – in cartons with plastic forks. 

It led to a five-strong team from the island’s SWAT police unit swooping on some of the tourists in the reception of Le Grand Courlan hotel in Stonehaven on Sunday evening. 

A khaki-clad police commander interrogated them as another officer in black combat uniform with a machine gun stood by. 

Three more SWAT police officers stood guard at the door. A tape recording of the confrontation obtained by the Daily Mail shows how the police chief said they were accused of ‘accosting’ and ‘threatening’ the hotel manager. 

He warned that if there was evidence of ‘civil unrest’ he had the power to close the hotel. 

The recording shows the local travel agent representative appear to threaten reprisals after the group’s spokesman, Essex businessman Barry Davison, 71, insisted they did nothing wrong. 

The rep said: ‘Let me explain exactly how this is going to play out. We are not going to take any more of your nonsense. We will pack your bags and get you out [of the hotel]. 

‘You are going to be reported to the High Commissioner’s office. A file is going to be opened against you. You then become a flight risk and will lose that [the flight]. This is how serious this is.’ 

Mr Davison can be heard asking the police chief for ‘the right of reply’ before complaining that the rep had earlier told them: ‘If you don’t like it pack your bags and f*** off!’ 

The rep denied saying this. The clash started when Mr Davison and his wife Lou, fellow Britons Justin Williams and Ian Cooper, and two other tourists protested that they had to put up with crude meals in cardboard boxes – unlike guests at nearby hotels. 

They said they were also banned from drinking alcohol, even though they had paid for it as part of the package. Mr Davison, who shelled out £2,500 for the holiday, told the Mail: ‘The police commander said we had accosted and threatened the hotel manager. 

‘It was an outrageous lie and we were not going to take it lying down. The rep threatened to throw us in the streets.’ 

In the end they took the flight back and are expected to land at Gatwick today. 

Blue Bay Travel declined to comment.  

British tourists are offered loans to help them get back home

British tourists who are stranded abroad will be offered emergency loans to help get them home, the Foreign Secretary said yesterday. 

Dominic Raab admitted that financial assistance would be granted as ‘a last resort’ as holidaymakers around the world discovered their flights have been cancelled. 

His intervention comes a day after he urged citizens to get home within 48 hours ‘while you still can’ or face being stranded overseas. 

Passengers wear protective masks as they depart Ngurah Rai International Airport in Bali, Indonesia on Tuesday. Dominic Raab admitted that financial assistance would be granted as ‘a last resort’ as holidaymakers around the world discovered their flights have been cancelled

Passengers wear protective masks as they depart Ngurah Rai International Airport in Bali, Indonesia on Tuesday. Dominic Raab admitted that financial assistance would be granted as ‘a last resort’ as holidaymakers around the world discovered their flights have been cancelled

That deadline expires tonight. But tourists trapped across the globe believe the call to return home should have been made more than a week ago. 

Thousands have carefully followed the advice put out by the Foreign Office and airlines – only to discover that their flights have been abruptly cancelled. 

Pensioners, pregnant women and young children are among the hordes of British tourists who are trying to find routes home from far-flung destinations. 

One couple arrived at Auckland airport in New Zealand to discover their flight was cancelled – and were then offered replacement tickets on a flight in July. 

Flight prices have soared, with one airline selling seats at £8,000 each from Bali to London. 

Some tourists are attempting to hire a Boeing 777 to get them home from New Zealand. 

But many others have little money left and are running out of crucial medicine. 

Speaking in the Commons yesterday, Mr Raab said 80 countries have placed restrictions on borders in the past three days. 

‘That situation is unprecedented in scale and our over-riding priority now is to assist the thousands of British travellers who need and want to return home,’ he said. 

He added: ‘We are helping to reduce travel costs by encouraging airlines to have maximum flexibility on changing return tickets. Where people are in real need, our consular teams will work with them to consider their options and, as a last resort, we offer an emergency loan.’ 

Mr Raab said Britons stuck in Peru would be able to return home later this week after a discussion with the country’s foreign minister led to flights being laid on. 

The Foreign Office has doubled its capacity to answer calls and plans to double it again. It is also looking to find accommodation for those who cannot get a flight. 

But stranded tourists yesterday said they have been unable to get through to Foreign Office helplines and that British embassies have been either closed or unable to help. 

Nicholas Isaac, who is in Auckland with his girlfriend, told the Mail: ‘The advice to come home is way, way too late. 

Retired couple Steve and Anna Dobson have been stranded in Peru after their dream holiday went into lockdown. Dominic Raab expects the remainder of British citizens in Peru to be flown home later this week

Retired couple Steve and Anna Dobson have been stranded in Peru after their dream holiday went into lockdown. Dominic Raab expects the remainder of British citizens in Peru to be flown home later this week

Cha Cahill from County Offaly and his girlfriend Andrea Moore who are stuck in Melbourne, Australia and have spent almost 5,000 euros on flights back to Ireland

Cha Cahill from County Offaly and his girlfriend Andrea Moore who are stuck in Melbourne, Australia and have spent almost 5,000 euros on flights back to Ireland

‘Everyone said it’s a joke. If we were told a week or two weeks ago, then we could have made it.’ 

Mr Isaac, 29, from Surrey, said he and hundreds of others were even banned from entering the airport terminal. 

And in Spain, several major airlines have no spare seats to bring UK passengers home this week. 

Consumer group Which? said travellers wanting to leave the country were unable to book flights with Ryanair, EasyJet or Jet2. 

Sandra Will and her husband Lewis were due to fly home with Ryanair from Alicante to Aberdeen on Thursday, but the flight was cancelled. 

They re-booked for Sunday, only for that flight to be cancelled too. 

Mrs Will said: ‘We are in our 70s and I have recently been released from a Spanish hospital after having a mini stroke, so this kind of stress does not help.’

 

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