Results 2,701-2,720 of 6,944 for speaker:Michael McNamara

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: If one arrives in from Portugal or Spain, for example, on a Sunday, is it correct that that person cannot go to work on a Monday morning?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: I understand the advice but what I am getting at is the difference between advice and law. If the person is advised not go to work on the Monday morning, and this may be a selfish thing for the person to do, but the person may say that he or she wants to go to work on the Monday morning as the family has to be fed. They have just been on an expensive holiday for which the family has saved...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: What happens if the employee does not take leave?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: What if the employee says that he or she would love to take leave but cannot afford to as the person needs to go to work to support his or her family and does not have any leave left for that year. What happens then?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: What happens in Mr. Towey’s Department? I appreciate that he cannot answer for the entire public service but what happens if the person is an employee of the Minister of Transport, Tourism and Sport?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: Is there a lawful basis to-----

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: That is rather vague, but I will take Mr. Spratt’s word on it. Returning to another point, Mr. Spratt does not appear to have any confidence in testing on arrival. We are slightly out of kilter with some other EU countries in that regard. Mr. Spratt nonetheless says that he is looking at departure-point testing. How would he differentiate between the accuracy of departure-point...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: Is Mr. Towey saying he would be concerned that introducing testing in Ireland would be a disincentive to people travelling to Ireland? Is it not the purpose of red lists, green lists and all of this to have a disincentive to travel? We have all of this confused messaging about a requirement to quarantine, no requirement to quarantine, it might be possible to quarantine, and we actually...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: I notice that Deputy Shanahan is joining the meeting, which may be a welcome relief. I have a few more questions to ask before I bring him in. The first of them relates to the doubts about the accuracy of testing on arrival. Mr. Spratt has spoken about looking into departure-point testing. Is it the case that testing is more accurate in other countries? If we do not trust the accuracy of...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: Okay. The Department is going to make the passenger locator form electronic. Does that mean one will have to fill it in before one boards a plane?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: Will that also apply to ports and ferries?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: Will it apply to buses and trains crossing the Border?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: I would like to ask about what happens if one flies into Northern Ireland from one of the 44 countries that UK citizens can fly to and from. I am not suggesting that one can fly to 44 countries from Belfast as I have no idea where one can fly to from there, but I know there is an airport there. If one flies into Belfast having been in any country in the world, or if one drives or gets a bus...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: There is, however, the question of the passenger locator form. Do you know how many residents of the Republic of Ireland would fly out of Belfast or other UK airports for holidays in a typical year?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: Would your Department have those figures?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: It is. Would Mr. Towey accept that typically 30,000 people cross the Border every day?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: Okay.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: I do not have the figures. If you had a more accurate figure I would welcome it. Would you accept that there is no record whatsoever? I accept the majority of these people are travelling from somewhere a couple of miles from one side of the Border to somewhere a couple of miles on the other side of it for work, family reasons and so on. There is also, however, a large cohort of people who...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: My question is whether the very restrictive measures being put in place in the Republic of Ireland are proportionate given the amount of travel via Northern Ireland and the complete lack of any record of people travelling via Northern Ireland? These could be people travelling from Larne to Stranraer or via other routes. Are there two airports in Belfast? I do not know whether there are two...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Impact on Public Transport (Resumed) (24 Jul 2020)

Michael McNamara: Okay. I thank Mr. Towey for all those clarifications. I have one last question and I see Deputy Shanahan is indicating. Why has the number of centres in which public service vehicles can be tested been reduced? There was a time when one could test in almost every DOE testing centre, as they were called. Now, for example, one can only do part of the test in Ennis and must go to Limerick...