90 cross-party MPs & Peers call on the Foreign Secretary to start chartering flights to return hundreds of British nationals still stranded in Pakistan

London: MPs and Peers across the House have today written to the Foreign Secretary, Dominic Raab,calling on him to arrange charter flights to bring home British nationals stranded in Pakistan as a result of the global coronavirus lockdown.

Many British nationals have complained to MPs of the chaotic operation of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), the only airline permitted by the Pakistani Government to fly in and out of the country.

Given recent experiences of PIA, who have cancelled numerous
flights to the UK at the last minute after charged nearly £1,000 per ticket, many nationals now have little trust in the airline to carry them home.

The remaining British nationals in Pakistan are facing serious financial difficulties. MPs welcomed the financial support available through the British High Commission in the form of emergency loans, but are concerned that short-term loans only delay the financial difficulties for a later date.

MPs are now calling on the Government to urgently reconsider its ongoing dependence on the commercial operations to repatriate citizens out of Pakistan and look for alternative options.

Afzal Khan MP said: “I have been contacted by hundreds of constitutes in Pakistan who are increasingly anxious about being unable to return home to the UK. Many of these constituents are elderly, vulnerable and suffering from critical underlying health conditions and running low on essential medication.

The chaos and miscommunication of PIA’s commercial operation, including the recent industrial action, has become a source of real
frustration and anxiety amongst the remaining British nationals in Pakistan. We are calling on the Government to reassess its reliance solely on PIA and look for alternative options to bring British nationals home to safety.”