Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Both of the Deputies asked about the rapid testing so I will answer that first. I believe there is a role for rapid testing but there are differently held views among experts on both sides of this. Some believe there is a very limited role for rapid testing, while others believe there is a very broad and useful role for it. I am in favour of rapid testing. There are risks, such as people believing they have a highly accurate negative test, but with rapid testing they do not. Serious concerns have also been expressed about how those people may then behave in social interactions. They would incorrectly believe that they have a negative result in the same way one would have from PCR testing. On the other side, however, rapid testing is very quick, it is easy and it is cost effective. If the right test is used in the right way, and when a person gets a positive result from it, the result can be very accurate, which is up to 99.9% accurate. I believe that rapid testing has a greater role to play.

The Deputies have asked what we are doing in this regard. I have established an expert group, led by Professor Mark Ferguson, to report back to me on that. The group has come up with some very interesting and thought provoking views. The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Charlie McConalogue, and I have a large project happening in the meat processing plants. Rapid testing has been deployed into healthcare settings. We are looking at pilot programmes where other sectors and areas could use rapid testing, be they in the construction sector or other commercial and State sectors.

On the question of the heart transplant patients, I will ask NIAC for a view and the public health team for a detailed answer to that for the Deputy.

I thank both Deputies for their supportive words on the helpline and the enhanced local measures. As of 11 a.m. today, five new centres for walk-in testing have opened up. Four are in Dublin and one is in Offaly. I must clarify that this is not for rapid testing, it is for PCR testing and it is self-referral. We are starting with five areas for seven days and we can increase that if there is a strong demand for it. We are targeting areas with persistently high cases to try to encourage people in the local communities to get tested so we can really identify and get rid of this virus, especially in the areas where case numbers are very high.

I will absolutely take up the Deputy's point about the Carlow vaccination centre with the HSE. I am aware that more vaccination centres are now coming on line. Many of them have been tested and trialled with healthcare workers and others. As was said earlier in the debate, we said we expect to see a significant increase in testing very soon and the vaccination centres will play a very important part in that.

See this speech in context