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

I wish to raise the issue of testing at airports and ports. Last week, the Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Deputy Naughton, confirmed that Dublin Airport and Cork Airport have a capacity of just 150 daily PCR tests and that this will increase to just 300 tests by year end. Even taking account of the 91% fall in passenger numbers recorded last month, 8,500 people still pass through Dublin Airport every day. My colleague, Deputy Darren O'Rourke, pointed out to the Minister of State that the projected increase in testing capacity to 300 by year end would barely cover a single flight coming into the country. I am conscious that at Christmas many people will heed what I assume will be advice to be cautious or not to travel at all, but there will still be an increased number of people coming onto the island.

The president of the Irish Air Line Pilots Association, told the Joint Committee on Transport and Communication Networks last week that he believed rapid testing should be available for arriving and departing passengers as well as for staff working at the airports on a daily basis. That seems to me to be just a matter of common sense. I am concerned and astonished. I wonder why there has not been a comprehensive comparison of PCR, LAMP and rapid antigen testing to identify the effectiveness of each when used in various settings. Is it the intention of the Government to maintain its very hands-off approach to the inevitable public health challenge that will arise from an increase in passenger numbers through the airports next month? More generally in terms of bringing us through this crisis in one piece, why we are still having this debate about the necessity for testing at ports and airports when it is obviously necessary and a priority matter?

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