Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

This was meant to be a debate of one hour and 45 minutes. It is now down to 45 minutes. As usual, everything is rushed, fumbled and illogical. There is confusion. It is unreal. The Government should be named "the Government of Utter and Total Confusion".

On mandatory hotel quarantine, I am not going to be a hypocrite. I called for it at the very start when we were locking down our people. We allowed open borders. I will not be a hypocrite. I called for mandatory hotel quarantine and said we should have it. Many people were aghast and could not believe we had open borders when there were so many restrictions, affecting everything from worship and matches to games, work, school and play of any kind. I raised this with the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste, formerly the Taoiseach, on this floor. We were told we were good Europeans and had to do it. I always referred to how Hungary and Poland proceeded. We could not do that. We introduced quarantining late in the day. We tendered it out and got a company to administer it. I have heard nothing but complaints about it. Young Irish teachers out in Dubai who are trying to come home for the summer have to quarantine. Some have children. This is expensive. No thought at all was put into the costs involved, including the human and psychological costs. There is the financial cost also. People cannot afford to stay in hotels. They could quarantine at home just as well. Now we are extending the timeframe in the legislation again until October, I believe. I am not sure of the date. I am totally opposed to the extension because it is too late. Anybody who is a sheep farmer will know that if you let one sheep out the gap, the others will all go after it and make a bigger gap. You would want a good sheepdog to bring them back.

There was confusion this morning again over what is happening with the reopening of hospitality. There is utter confusion. It is not fair to the public. There are plenty of paid civil servants and there are advisers by the dozen. They are not in sync. The Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, Deputy Catherine Martin, is saying one thing and the Tánaiste is saying another. It is really a vying for the airwaves. NPHET is also vying for the airwaves. I am opposed to the extension because it is illogical. It is too little too late. If the system had been run properly at first, we might have been in a different place.

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