Vincent P Martin (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

We face an emergency. Covid-19 is rampant in the country and could get worse if we do not act now. Our health, economy and social lives are suffering immensely. We have had more fatalities from Covid in less than a year than we had in the dreadful times of the Troubles in Northern Ireland. The people have made enormous sacrifices.

I regret to say that if we are to be objective about it, the current strategy is not working effectively. What can be done? A number of experts in Ireland and beyond have called for a zero Covid strategy. I encourage the Government to consider adopting such an approach. The Independent Scientific Advocacy Group has many respected academics and other persons involved, including Dr. Tomás Ryan, who was very impressive on television last night, Dr. Julien Mercille and Professor Anthony Staines. At the very least it is worth consideration.

The Independent Scientific Advocacy Group will point out that a zero Covid strategy is simply doing what is possible to suppress this virus towards elimination. Despite what the name might imply, it is not a utopian goal of perfection; it is an unfortunate name. The group's viewpoint has been labelled as being unrealistic. It is realistic but it has not been realised because of the reality that the Government will not give this proper and due consideration.

I am a Senator from a Government party which not only tolerates but encourages diverse opinions. We should put them all on the table and explore them fully. We should not be afraid of them and should test them forensically. What is the harm in failure? We get knocked down; we get up again; you're never going to keep us down. It is worth consideration. I hope the Government will give it detailed discussion and countenance that as a possibility.

In the world today, there are two types of countries: those that have beaten Covid; and those still struggling with Covid. The good thing is that all those that have beaten Covid have all done essentially the same thing.They have pursued a strategy of aggressive suppression, which is what a zero Covid approach entails. We need only to copy what has been done successfully elsewhere.

In terms of key interventions that can be made by the Government, it boils down to three which must be executed with discipline. First, we need a lockdown to end all lockdowns. This will bring massive rewards for our people. The current restrictions will drive the case numbers to a level manageable by our contact tracing teams. Let me be clear, everyone hates lockdowns, but they lead to huge rewards and allow us to start living again soon. With discipline and an effective lockdown, we can go back to pubs, sports, socialising, singing, shopping, hugging and everything else.

As a former schoolteacher, I am particularly concerned for the mental wellness of young people. They have been deprived of interaction in our schools. They have also been deprived of sport, which is an essential platform and outlet for young people. They have held the line to date. I pray they will continue to do that. They need to know there is light at the end of the tunnel, even if it involves short-term pain to achieve long-term gain. We hope that the young people will continue to play the brilliant role they have played to date. Schools reopening is very important. We can debate at what specific level of cases they can reopen, but it must be a low level. This is also dependent on the school type and the area where it is located. Again, a lot depends on community involvement.

Second, there is no point driving down case numbers if we allow travel to reseed the country with more infections. To a certain extent, this is what happened in the summer, although I am not placing all of the blame in this area. I do think this has been overhyped by some people, but it is undoubtedly a contributing factor. Had the situation been managed properly, we were two weeks from zero Covid at that point. A few international travellers at that time formed part of the cocktail that reseeded the virus in the country and it then grew exponentially. We all know where we are now. We need mandatory hotel quarantine and border checkpoints and management. The virus knows no boundaries, be they borders between counties or jurisdictions. We need proper management. There is no question that these actions, if done well, will bring sufficient results.

The countries that have controlled Covid insist on some form of tight quarantine for travel. There is no other way around it. If we choose to pursue a zero Covid strategy, east-west is key to it because the parties in the Six Counties cannot agree on this. I know the issue should not be politicised, but an east-west approach and two islands working together on implementation of a zero Covid strategy would provide us all with incredible freedom, liberation and protection. In regard to the Border region, we manage it in the same way as we would manage any other county. Where there are high case numbers, they must be contained. We follow the science and the data. There is nothing political about it, we need only follow the data. We already have a border management plan and a restriction around travel beyond a 5 km radius. The Independent Scientific Advocacy Group plans show us how red zones and buffer zones can be used to relax the 5 km radius limit in the country.

Third, we must invest in public health. Test, trace and isolate is vital. After a few weeks of lockdown, case numbers will be down to a manageable level. At that point our testing and tracing infrastructure will be key to keeping it that way. The problem is that Ireland has underinvested in its public health infrastructure and staff.

I implore the Government to consider these actions. The Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, who I know is very open-minded, does not need to make any decision today.I commend the Government. I am not having a go at it. Government members are doing their level best, day and night. The Seanad as the Upper House has a famous tradition of allowing for different viewpoints, which we can ventilate in the Chamber while testing and challenging ourselves. I hope the Minister of State will take my points on board and bring them back to the Government. I will do the same as I do in the parliamentary party, An Comhaontas Glas, so at least people can be assured that it was absolutely fully considered and explored. To date, however, I do not believe it has been given the full forensic examination and the realistic appraisal, critique and approach it deserves.