Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

It is not true to say that it is entirely and exclusively in the gift of the Taoiseach to deliver an all-Ireland approach. The Taoiseach and the Government in Dublin can certainly have a major bearing on delivering it, however. I have raised these issues with the Taoiseach before and I have told him that the systems, North and South, have been anaemic, quite frankly, in delivering the necessary all-island approach. We all know that for the purposes of epidemiology we are a single unit, and the only way to keep any of us safe is to keep all of us safe. We cannot have a reservoir of this virus anywhere on the island because it will imperil all of us.

We have the memorandum of understanding, as the Taoiseach is aware. The job of work North to South and South to North is to give that memorandum much more dynamic effect. The issues we need to address include, for example, testing and tracing on a cross-Border basis. It is insane to have the tracing element falling down between Strabane and Lifford, for example. We also need an all-Ireland approach in respect of travel and coming onto the island. In fact, if we must explore that matter as a construct of the common travel area and have a two-island approach, so be it. As the Taoiseach knows, we proposed that be considered in the British-Irish Council. In any event, we must have an agreed set of standards for self-isolation, restriction of movement and quarantine.

Unless we have these all-island harmonised platforms, and delivery on them regarding testing and tracing and regulation of travel onto and off the island, we will be doomed for the foreseeable future to yo-yo in and out of very restrictive and massively damaging lockdowns and heavy restrictions. They are damaging economically, but also devastating socially for our citizens. As uachtarán Shinn Féin, I state that we stand ready to play our part in the delivery of that all-Ireland approach. I emphasise, however, that it is simply not going to happen in the absence of a dynamic from Dublin, and a real intent to deliver this all-Ireland approach. I know the chief medical officers are in regular contact and there is some contact between the health ministers, but it should not be overstated. There are complaints north of the Border that the southern system is not playing ball in providing all of the information. That is what I am told from the health minister north of the Border.

Be that as it may, however, whatever difficulties exist need to be ironed out. We are coming into the Christmas period, and hopefully community transmission will be much suppressed. I hope people can expect a decent Christmas. We need to set the bar higher and resolve, as an island, that we will do everything within our grasp to avoid another very hard lockdown. I think we can do that, but we are only going to do it on a cross-Border and all-island basis.

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