Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This is an important debate and I wish to articulate the views of people in my constituency who have been communicating with me. Obviously, airline staff, pilots and their families are very concerned, but they all recognise, as I do, that health is the most important thing here and it is important that we get it right. The advice of NPHET, which is the Holy Grail in the context of the voice that the Government must listen to above all, must be considered and given the greatest weight.

That said, an American rang me the other day. He happens to be my brother and has a business. He operates in Ireland and in America. He made the point that he has received full vaccination and has gone through the waiting period thereafter. Then he read in the newspaper that citizens from Kuwait, Mongolia, Iran and Puerto Rico can fly into Ireland without mandatory quarantining, yet Americans like him cannot. There is something significantly wrong here. I hope that when the Government addresses this issue on Friday it will listen carefully to the business people and family members who want to come to Ireland. The longer we wait, the longer will be the delay in their business and other decisions. In addition, there are people who have families in the United Kingdom, whom they have not seen for over a year in many cases. There is a massive, pent-up demand in my constituency among people who have relatives in the UK to be able to travel there or for their relatives to be able to travel here. It is a very important issue and I hope the Government will address it. It does not make sense that one can fly into Belfast from the UK and travel here, but one cannot do the opposite.

However, I welcome the progress that is being made. I particularly welcome the concept of the European digital green certificate. It will help many families, make a lot of decisions easier and make business owners and families happier as a result.

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