Scott Morrison cops flack from Aussies for photo at Cornwall pub

Hundreds of Aussies separated from their loved ones overseas have lashed out at Prime Minister Scott Morrison over a happy snap taken at a UK hotel.

Hundreds of Aussies separated from their loved ones overseas have lashed out at Prime Minister Scott Morrison over a happy snap taken at a UK hotel.

On Monday the Jamaica Inn — in the Cornwall town of Launceston — posted a picture of Mr Morrison with several staffers from the pub captioned: “Pleasure to have the Australian Prime Minister & his 20+ personal team for lunch this weekend … you never know what you might find at Jamaica Inn!”

However, Australians were quick to comment on the photo and attack Mr Morrison for keeping families and loved ones separated in pursuit of the government’s Covid Zero strategy while heading off to Europe for the G7.

Scott Morrison at the Jamaica Inn in Cornwall, England.

Facebook user Katharina Zink Attana wrote: “Looks like a great restaurant! Sadly it highlights the double standards. ScoMo is trying to tell Australians that UK is Covid riddled and if it wasn’t for him keeping borders completely shut we would all risk a sure death.”

Megan Ryan responded: “So ridiculously tone deaf. Gallivanting around a country which is supposedly ‘Covid-ravaged’ and has case numbers which are supposedly an example of the reason he won’t even think about removing his inhumane border closures.”

“Yet my 9 month old dual citizen Aus/UK son hasn’t met one member of his maternal family because it’s all far too dangerous. What a joke. I’m furious.”

Sophie Robinson wrote: “So we are being locked in Australia for 15 months and counting, because its ‘too unsafe’ in any other country in the whole world apart from Australia. Yet here is ScoMo, no mask, no social distancing enjoying an English pub lunch!”

Mr Morrison has come under increasing pressure to reveal a road map for reopening international borders, with slowly opening travel bubbles understood to be the most likely path for Australia through at least the next 12 to 18 months.

Outside of travel bubbles, such as the one currently open with New Zealand, Australians must apply for government permission even to leave the country, a requirement understood to be almost entirely unique among free, democratic nations.

Meanwhile other countries such as the UK are moving to open their borders and reinvigorate their tourist sectors.

The G7 world leaders at the Carbis Bay Estate. Picture: Adam Taylor

Many nations in Europe as well as Israel now allow visitors to enter without quarantining with proof of vaccination and a negative Covid test pre-departure.

The UK, which has vaccinated more than two-thirds of its population, is currently experiencing more than 7,000 new cases per day.

However, because of the protective effects of the vaccine, there has been a huge drop in hospitalisation and mortality and a slow return to normal life.

On June 14 in the UK, there were just three deaths from coronavirus, down from over 1,200 a day at the pandemic’s peak in January.