Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The situation in relation to the virus is very fragile. I recall when I came in here early this year we had 42,000 cases in one week and we had 2,000 people in hospital. I made it clear on that occasion that I wanted to see a consistent suppression of the virus. In the past seven days we had 3,800 cases and 325 or 329 in hospital. The point is that the sacrifices people have made have had an impact in getting case numbers dramatically down from the January figure and getting hospitalisations dramatically down, as well as the numbers in ICU, which are currently at 76. That needs to be said. The level 5 restrictions have worked effectively to bring numbers down very significantly from where they were. That needs to be acknowledged. People need to know that and not to be given mixed messages by the Opposition which consistently tries to blur the facts. The numbers are still relatively high compared to the first and second waves. The fundamental reason for that is we are dealing with a variant that is highly transmissible and more dangerous. That is the context. We have been very clear that increased mobility can be a factor in facilitating the spread of the variant. That is why we are currently in level 5. I have been very consistent in saying publicly and in every forum that no decision has been made on the post 5 April situation. We will be engaging with the public health advice and other research regarding this.

We acknowledge the enormous stress, strain and difficulties the current lockdown is imposing on people in terms of the restrictions on their personal freedom and liberties, keeping within 5 km and not meeting up with others. The reason for that is we do not want to go back to a situation where we have 2,000 people in hospital or 42,000 cases in a given week. That is what we must avoid. The variant is essentially a new virus in terms of endeavouring to contain it. That governs how we will approach the phase after 5 April. I am watching other countries such as Czechia, France, Germany, Slovakia and a range of countries in Europe where the trajectory is upwards. Ours is flattening but it has gone back up in the past seven days. That is something we need to very seriously take into account.

We are the first country in the European Union to introduce mandatory hotel quarantine. I assure Deputy McDonald that I want to try to develop a united front here, but she was encouraging people and pressing the Government to facilitate travel at Christmas time. She said that publicly. She had her own definition of what constituted essential travel. Up to quite recently she said mandatory quarantine should be for non-essential travel, which misses the point about mandatory quarantine in the first instance, because once one has mandatory quarantine it is designed to-----

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