Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I do not think that it is fair. I acknowledge the gravity of the Deputy's second question and thank him for asking it. Many are asking questions abut who texted who when and who called who when and why did something happen at 6 p.m. on a Saturday instead of 12 o'clock on a Sunday. There was a very clear process over the weekend which led us to have to make a decision. All that matters is the substance of the Deputy's question.

I have met the zero Covid people and we have had some good conversations. There is good thinking there. We all agree on the direction of travel, namely to suppress the virus. They want to go further and have a view of what can happen when we get there. The public health officials who advise me have a different view and the experience around Europe is also different. No country knows the right answer to this, it is new, but other European countries are not pursuing a zero Covid strategy.

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