Paul McAuliffe (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate the Minister coming before us. When the invitation was issued 14 days ago, the meeting was scheduled to address the increased restrictions in counties Kildare, Laois and Offaly. Over the past 14 days, while it is disappointing that Kildare has not emerged from those restrictions, we have successfully managed the outbreak in those counties. By allowing the public health experts to take the lead, we dealt with the virus as well as we could.

Over the course of the meeting, I have taken away two lessons. The first was when I heard Mr. Paul Reid talking about us living with the virus and Dr. Ronan Glynn talking about how we can reopen sensibly. The strategy we are now engaging in, which is not a zero-risk strategy, is based on the idea that we must allow our economy to reopen so that we can go to school, engage with our health service and protect jobs, but with the balance always on the side of public health. If that is the case, the Minister's analogy of risk management, about which there has been some discussion, is actually a correct one. An analogy I have used many times, although I hesitate to use an analogy again, relates to the first time one lets one's child walk to the shop. One will never know when is the right time to do it. It will inevitably involve risk but the parent knows that the child must be allowed to grow and gain independence. Each time we go out into the world there are risks, and as we head into a world of living with the virus, that is what we are doing.

What we heard today, however, was the idea that while previously activities were judged on whether they allowed for social distancing and on the public health advice, we now seem to be moving into a different area where some activities, even though they allow for social distancing, are not permitted because they involve increased inter-household contact. That brings us into a difficult territory where we are making judgments about what is a good or bad activity. That is always a dangerous area for the Government to be involved in. If we are to live with this virus for long periods, perhaps we would be better off guiding people to have a prescribed number of contacts or a prescribed level of social contact, and to allow them to apply it, whether they want to go to a football match where they can stand 2 m apart or whether they want to go for a meal in a restaurant where the distance is only 1 m. Different people choose different things to do in their lives. I worry that if we are to stay with this virus for long periods, we may end up in a difficulty where the State dictates what is a desirable activity. I know that is not the intention at the moment as we unravel the advice, but if the virus is to be with us for several months, we will need to give more leniency and to get back to circumstances where people can more easily understand what is or is not permitted.