John McGahon (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Going back to the subject matter, which is not about the best Opposition ever provided in the history of the State, I find it is important that I personally turn up to all briefings about topics like this to ensure that I am well-informed so that when we debate specific matters, I can discuss them. That is what I am doing here.

Retail has more or less been sorted this afternoon. However, GD Tours, a company based in Derry, last night proposed to take a bus load of shoppers from Derry on a round trip of 452 km to Dundrum Shopping Centre on 5 December. As retail would be closed in Northern Ireland but open in the South, they felt they could come down here. It has now subsequently put a post on Facebook stating that it did not realise the restrictions in place. Was the company living on the dark side of the moon for the past 12 months? Where has it been since February of this year that it thought it would be acceptable to bus down a whole load of shoppers more than 452 km on a round trip to Dublin? That seriously undermines the real efforts being made on both sides of the Border.

When we talk about an all-Ireland approach to Covid, it works both ways. It is not just about people on this side of the Border having to make sacrifices while people in Northern Ireland think that they can come 450 km down the road to shop here. Perhaps if other people turned up to briefings, they would know that too.