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Oliver
Oliver and his fiancee Andrea have already called off their wedding twice, after getting engaged four years ago.
A British man who will get married in the Czech Republic on Saturday says 30 guests had to leave before the wedding to get through the UK quarantine changes.
Oliver, who did not give his last name, says that many of his friends and family, including his sister, have had to fly home before the nuptials take place in the capital, Prague, as they cannot isolate themselves due to work constraints.
Travelers arriving in the UK from the Czech Republic, as well as Switzerland and Jamaica, after Saturday’s deadline at 04:00 BST must be quarantined for 14 days, according to coronavirus travel rules announced Thursday at night.
“I have less than 30 guests and my little sister, who is a bridesmaid, is distressed to have to fly home tonight before the wedding (she is a teacher),” said the 38-year-old from Kent. she told the Press Association news agency.
After saying a “tearful goodbye” to the family who had to fly home early, he says he and his fiancee Andrea, 33, had barely slept and been “emotionally drained” before their wedding.
Oliver and Andrea, who are from the Czech city of Pardubice, have already called off their wedding twice due to pregnancy after getting engaged for the first time four years ago.
The couple had booked their third attempt down the aisle for August before closing, telling guests the ceremony would continue after the Czech Republic was included on the UK’s safe travel corridors list in July.
Several of Oliver’s family members had pulled out of the recently planned wedding due to age and poor health, which he says “was a shame but understandable.”
Oliver, who has lived in the Czech Republic for 11 years, says “arbitrary” decision-making by the UK government has left the couple and their family “crying before what is supposed to be the best day of their lives” .
He says he and Andrea went ahead with their wedding because they believed that the Czech government had “done very well” in controlling the virus and relaxing restrictions, so the rule change came as a shock.
After an “incredibly stressful” week, Oliver believes the government “should do more to communicate with people in advance.”
But for now, he’s grateful that some friends and his immediate family, minus his sister, are agreeing to quarantine to attend his wedding.
The Czech Republic was removed from the UK’s safe travel broker list after the government cited data saying the country had seen a weekly increase in cases per 100,000 from 16.2 on August 20 to 20.2 on Thursday.
The country receives more than 300,000 British tourists each year, according to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. The capital, Prague, is a popular destination for city breaks and stag parties.
