Dáil debates

Tuesday, 25 May 2021

International Travel and Aviation: Statements

 

4:45 pm

Photo of Seán SherlockSeán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I note the submission to the Taoiseach by the Irish Air Line Pilots' Association. Those pilots are outside this building today and we stand in solidarity with them. They refer to four pillars in their correspondence to the Taoiseach: travel within the common travel area of Ireland and the UK; travel within the European Union; travel between Ireland, the EU and the United States of America; and the application of rapid antigen testing inbound to Ireland to safely facilitate the other three pillars. In her statement to the House, the Minister of State said "PCR testing for international travel [is] among a suite of public health measures designed to mitigate this risk". Last week I told the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, that we needed to have an honest debate about the distinction between PCR testing and antigen testing and I reiterate that. We need to have an honest, reasoned and scientific debate about the difference between PCR testing and antigen testing. If the PCR test becomes the prerequisite for the digital green certificate and if the benchmarks are that people have to be vaccinated, tested and recovered, I fear that, subject to a reasoned and rational scientific debate of this House, many families will be excluded from travel throughout either the European Union or elsewhere. The issue of antigen testing has to be part of the debate.

I have noted the comments from our colleagues in Sinn Féin about the privatisation of Aer Lingus. If Sinn Féin is proposing the re-nationalisation of the airline, we would all be very happy to hear whatever proposals it might have on that issue. For now, we want to speak for Aer Lingus families and for families from any airline. There are families in Cork at the moment who are relying wholly on payments from the Department of Social Protection and because of the nature of their work and how their hours are structured annually, they are now falling off a cliff. They are getting no more money from the Department and we need to get them back to work.

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