We are in a constantly changing situation with the Coronavirus pandemic. It changed significantly with the Government’s announcement yesterday evening. There will now be far fewer facilities for visitors.
As the situation escalates, all our public services will be coming under increasing pressure for which they are planning and preparing. All is in hand. We would like to take this opportunity to thank all council, NHS and other public agency staff for the hard work that they are putting into managing this situation. We would also like to particularly thank all the volunteers in the community and third sector bodies who have responded in an admirable manner.
Scilly is a welcoming place and we value our visitors enormously. However, given the current unprecedented situation, Government advice to avoid all but essential travel, the likely pressure on public services, and the lack of facilities for visitors, we ask that anyone planning a holiday trip to Scilly defers their visit. Please plan to come later in the year when we hope the situation will have eased and we can provide a warm Scillonian welcome.
It is our view that a holiday is not essential travel. However, we still need essential workers and contractors to maintain services on Scilly and we are working with partners to secure the provision of transport links to and within our islands.
– Councillor Robert Francis, Chairman of the Council of the Isles of Scilly