A BOLTON man who is staying in a quarantine hotel with his pregnant wife and her young son has spoken of his family’s “nightmare” experience in staying there.

Hasim Sattar, from Astley Bridge, flew out to Lahore in Pakistan on March 20 to visit his uncle, who is in a critical condition with doubts cast over his health.

Just before leaving Qatar – where the family were due to fly back from via Lahore – was put on the government’s "red list" of countries, meaning travellers from those destinations need to quarantine for two weeks in a hotel.

To avoid the confinement, Mr Sattar, 25, changed the return flight to avoid Qatar and travel back to Manchester via Heathrow instead.

But while they were away, Pakistan was also placed on the "red list", and when he and his wife and her son returned on Friday, they were taken to the four-star Radisson RED Hotel London Heathrow for an enforced stay.

Mr Sattar, who works at a Premier off licence with his parents, said he has had to lend money from his family for the £2,400 fee and has already been faced with a number of problems.

The family were left with no drinking water on Sunday night, incorrect meals have been delivered and reception often do not answer calls, he said.

On Monday, he said he went hungry after not being served a meal and on Tuesday morning food was served after 5am, despite not being allowed to eat at that time due to Ramadan.

Mr Sattar said: “Since we have been at the hotel it has been the worst nightmare experience you could imagine, even prisoners have more rights and freedom than we’ve experienced.

"We have to order food on a QR code and since I’ve been here we have been given the wrong items or not even meals.

“We’re allowed to have two 20-minute breaks a day for fresh air, which we have to do individually, and be escorted by security.

"There is a space in the car park where you can go to with security, but for the rest of the time we are stuck in the hotel room.

"We also have to do our cleaning in the rooms and change the beds because of the rules.

"People are lucky if you get to reception on a break as nobody seems to answer the phone from the room.

"There is not enough hotel staff but there are lots of security.

“I want people to be aware of how bad the situation is at the hotel for us.

"It feels like we are in prison and being treated like criminals.

"My wife is pregnant and we have appointments at the Royal Bolton Hospital that we cannot go to because of being here."

Mr Sattar has received two apology letters from the hotel.

A hotel spokesman: “At Radisson RED Hotel London Heathrow, we take our role in assisting the UK government with its hotel quarantine programme very seriously – to help provide a safe and comfortable experience for travellers.

"We work with the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) to provide this service based on the costs set by the government.

"All staff at our properties have been trained in the Radisson Hotels Safety Protocol which includes mandatory use of PPE along with sanitation and hygiene procedures, as well as regular training for all staff on these procedures.

"Our team is working in partnership with the UK government-contracted security staff at the property who manage all guest movements at the property to help keep them safe and secure.

"A DHSC-contracted medical professional is also present on a 24 hour basis at the hotel and is able to provide an initial assessment of any mental health needs and has an escalation process in place.

"We take any feedback from guests on board to help continue to meet the standard of service in our property whilst complying with the requirements set by the DHSC.”