Robbie Gallagher (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The reduction in the incidence of Covid in recent days has been encouraging. The R-rate is now down below 1, which is welcome. I believe Ireland is in the top five in Europe, which indicates we are heading in the right direction. Irish people in their business and personal lives have paid an enormous price to be where we are today. They have made a significant sacrifice and personal effort to get to where we are.

Further to Senator Dooley's comments, many elderly people have paid an even greater price in having to cocoon and isolate themselves as far back as March. For them and for all of us, having something to look forward to is what life is all about. Many of them are now looking forward to the Christmas season. Many of those people have sons, daughters and grandchildren living and working across the globe. All of them are hoping to return home for the Christmas period. It is incumbent on the Government to be creative and find a way to allow these people to return home safely. The key word is "safely". Testing could be done before leaving the country where they live and if the test proves negative, they could be allowed to continue with their journey. When they arrive in this country, they could be tested again.That sort of imaginative thinking should not be beyond the Minister for Transport and I am sure it will not be. I call on him to introduce such testing, as a matter of urgency. As Senator Dooley outlined, we cannot do this the week before Christmas. We need a plan put in place today in order that people can plan properly and look forward to being reunited with their loved ones over the Christmas period.