Catherine Ardagh (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I join other Senators in welcoming the revision of the schedule to discuss issues in Palestine and thank Senator Black for sharing such a poignant poem. We have a seat on the UN Security Council and it has been recognised that we are doing good work on promoting de-escalation. As we know, however, words are not as strong as actions and much more needs to be done by the United Nations. I wish to express my disappointment at the discussion and handling of the use of antigen testing in this country. We have been fighting a war against Covid for more than a year. This enemy operates by stealth. It entered our communities unnoticed and has wreaked havoc. Many have lost their lives and people continue to make enormous sacrifices. We will be living with Covid for many years and the scars will be enormous. Many have lost loved ones and we have missed out on things like going to funerals and visiting elderly residents so I commend everyone on pushing back this enemy. Over the past few weeks, I have been really disappointed by the approach we have taken to antigen testing and the diminishing of its role. I would go so far as to say that this approach is tone deaf. We were told that antigen testing was snake oil. Now we are being told that it has limited benefits in certain circumstances. To be clear, I am not saying that antigen testing is a silver bullet. I strongly endorse the advice we have been given, which is to follow clear guidelines on social distancing, handwashing, sneezing and cough etiquette, etc., but I also believe that antigen testing should be rolled out to every business and organisation that is willing to use it to encourage people to go about their business. Of course, people need to be educated on how to use antigen tests correctly but I do not see any downside. I do not see how offering this to people going to the hairdressers has a downside. We have all cherished the opportunity to go to the hairdressers and we know how busy they are. I am asking for antigen testing to be rolled out to all industries, institutions and colleges. Denmark accepts antigen testing for entry into the country yet here we are told that it has very little value. Think about it. The authorities in Denmark uses antigen testing to allow people to enter the country but we are not encouraged to use it. Countries like the Czech Republic use it for dental and hair appointments. Antigen testing should be rolled out and used here by anyone who wants to use it to fight Covid. I hope that when our response to this pandemic is examined, our unenthusiastic approach to antigen testing will not be identified as a missed opportunity. I call on the Minister for Health to make the tests available at no cost to any business or organisation that wishes to use them and to launch an education campaign in respect of antigen testing.