Dr. David Kenny:

My reading of the section is that it is acceptable for the Minister to declare the whole country to be an affected area or, essentially, to apply measures nationally if, in the judgment of the Minister, that is what is necessary. We have spoken at length today about proportionality and it being based on circumstance. It may be that at a particular time a proportionate measure is taken to apply certain measures to the entire country but that at a later time, perhaps because of the way the spread of the disease has developed in practice or because of increased understanding about the risks of spread between various areas, that measure is no longer appropriate and measures should be more tailored and localised. Obviously, that is what we have moved towards in the recent stages of the pandemic. This is why it is important that the legislation and the regulations made thereunder should be quite strictly time limited to periods that are as short as possible and be subject to review. For example, if it was decided that certain measures should continue to apply nationally, there must be a review at regular intervals to examine whether the national measures are appropriate or whether more specific and localised measures are necessary. The matter is best addressed with the understanding that any extraordinary measure taken in the context of the pandemic needs to be time limited and reviewed by the Executive and the Legislature at some fairly proximate juncture to ensure that the decisions that are made remain proportionate in the light of subsequent changes.