Verona Murphy (Wexford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am amazed at the announcements this morning from the NVRL at University College Dublin, of which Dr. Cillian De Gascun is the laboratory director. The Ministers have to decide who is going to take care of the shortfall mentioned in this announcement. We have lost the capacity for 30,000 tests at the laboratory. We do not know who will do them instead or what preparations have been made while we lock down the country and tell people that it is their fault. We have heard Deputies say that we, as citizens, have to take responsibility. This is the responsibility of the Government alone.

I have seen the Virapro plan and the pesticides control service, PCS, certification for that sanitiser. This certification is very difficult to attain and most products already on the shelves in Ireland do not have it because it costs €300 and is not required. However, it is required where a product is used in Covid prevention. The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine is now telling us that "Tests by the Department show that some of the sanitiser on sale does not comply with regulations." How then did this product receive certification? How many other products have a certification they should not have? I ask the Ministers to speed up certification for compliant products so that replacement supplies will become available, allowing us to keep our schools open. I also ask that they investigate how the product Virapro receive PCS certification. Was it tested before it received this certification or after it had received it and had to be withdrawn?

These issues have arisen this morning but, more generally, I do not agree with Deputy Durkan and those who defend what can only be described as a failure of the State to put sufficient contact tracing in place and to build additional capacity within the HSE and in ICUs. The Government knows that the patience of the public is quickly wearing thin. These fines are proposed because the Government feels that stronger tactics are required to bring people into line. I can see the argument for breaking up reckless events and I see that deterrents are proposed in that regard but many people see these restrictions as unjust, unfair and a significant attack on their fundamental freedoms.

These Covid regulations are the most draconian laws to be imposed on the people in the history of the State. Some of our most fundamental rights under the Constitution are being cast aside. In proposing these fines, the Government will strike fear into the hearts of ordinary law-abiding citizens. Evidence from the previous lockdown shows that people will be afraid even to undertake essential journeys for fear of being punished. How will the regulations work in practice?

I was elected by the people of Wexford to represent their views as best I can. I will give the Minister a flavour of the types of issues that have been raised with me. Farmers in rural areas who do not have Internet skills or whose broadband service is poor can no longer buy cattle in the mart. They have been banned from attending and from standing at the ringside to place their bids. Retired couples who have not had as much as a penalty point between them are threatened with fines if they dare to drive to the local park to walk their dog. In rural communities, the local park could be 8 km to 10 km away and many people, old and young, do not feel safe walking on winding roads as cars fly past. Will they be fined or threatened with fines?

What of widows or widowers who enjoy a round of golf with their best friend for company? This sport, played out in the fresh air on hundreds of acres allowing for as much social distancing as one could want, is now banned. There are other incredible anomalies in the area of sport. Children can train for most sports except tennis and golf, two of the most socially distanced sports imaginable. All is good for a child who plays Gaelic games but a child in the same house who plays tennis or golf is banned from doing so.

The hard-working entrepreneurs who run SMEs may have spent thousands of euro in preparing to reopen but now have to close yet again as they are threatened with being financially punished by the State if they do not. These people have been financially punished enough by the State this year.

I have had anxious calls from college students from Wexford and their parents. They wonder if students will be fined for returning home on Friday after a week in college. It is easy for the Government to flippantly tell them that they must stay in their college accommodation but it is not always as simple as that. We in this House do not have to remain in Dublin all week. We can return home when our week's work is done. I want clarity as to whether students can do the same.

I also have concerns about the provisions to fine the owner of a property if any illegal gatherings take place on that property. Will the Minister clarify how this will work? Will it mean that landlords will face fines for the behaviour of their tenants? If so, that is an outrageous situation.

These regulations contain so many grey areas and are so open to interpretation. In fact, quite often the Government does not seem to understand what the regulations mean, or its understanding seems to be significantly different from Minister to Minister given that there was such confusion during the press conference the other night about when midnight on Wednesday was. For many, understanding the inconsistencies in these regulations will be like trying to understand the terms and conditions of a mobile phone contract. A PhD would be needed.

The Irish people take great pride in the fact that our police force operates on the principle of policing by consent. The proposed laws will be the most draconian that the Garda will ever be asked to enforce. I ask the Government to clarify the position relating to them.

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