Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, and the Ministers of State, Deputy Butler and Deputy Feighan, on their new roles. I know the Minister and the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, very well. If they bring the same vigour, enthusiasm and energy they brought as Opposition Deputies to their portfolios, and I have no doubt they will, we can look forward to a very busy and proactive team in the Department of Health.

I will use the few minutes available to me to have a brief question and answer session and I would appreciate it if the Ministers would respond as I put the questions. My first is to the Minister, Deputy Donnelly. I have spoken previously about the major concern about contact tracing, particularly in the Border counties. He is aware that, thankfully, as a result of the Good Friday Agreement, we have an invisible, seamless Border that people can move fluidly across from one county and one jurisdiction to another. However, the Covid pandemic has raised deep concerns, particularly for residents living in Border towns such as Castleblayney, Emyvale and Ballybay, who see people frequently visiting the North.

The reopening of public houses has led to people making frequent visits to such establishments in the North of Ireland and to residents back to their home towns and villages. The feedback I am getting from residents relates to their curiosity about how contact tracing works. I am aware that there has been good collaboration between the two jurisdictions. I ask to the Minister talk for a few minutes about this collaborative approach and how effective contact tracing has been in the Border region.

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