Mark Wall (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I also welcome the Minister of State. The aviation industry was already on its knees when we learned, with shock, of the scale of job losses at Stobart Air last week. There can be no doubt that this announcement has sent shock waves through every other aviation operator in this State at a time when they are all desperately seeking oxygen. The announcement has effectively opened the departure gates for the industry in this country, although warnings had been signalled by many, including in this House, in recent months.

It was stated earlier that the Government is continuing with a number of capital projects, including the expansion of Dublin Airport and the building of an additional runway there. Meanwhile, aviation workers and their families all over the country are on tenterhooks, listening for the next news broadcast and hoping against hope that their jobs will not be the next ones to go. Last week, members of the Dáil asked what is happening to the Irish aviation industry and, most importantly, to the workers in it. I repeat those questions now. What are we doing to protect their jobs? We cannot continue to pour money into capital projects without securing the experience and jobs of those currently working in the industry. That simply does not make sense.

We all welcomed the EWSS. There is no doubt that it has helped. It should be a concern for all that jobs are being lost, however. Workers are losing their employment, as Aer Lingus crews at Cork and Shannon airports and Stobart Air employees are finding out. I am sure all Members are receiving emails and letters from aviation families who feel that the Government is not trying hard enough to protect their livelihoods. There is no confidence among aviation workers that their worries and their families' concerns are being taken seriously. We are now just a couple of weeks away from 19 July and we all hope aviation will take off safely again, securing existing jobs and preventing any further losses.

Notwithstanding what the Minister of State has said - and I welcome the fact that she has written to the Minister for Health - it is very important that we talk about antigen testing. As others have already stated, antigen testing is not the silver bullet for the industry but it must be part of the solution to opening up again and part of the process the Government adopts to get the industry off its knees. Many eminent professionals and medical experts are promoting antigen testing as part of a package of solutions that includes PCR tests and the continuing roll-out of the vaccination programme to the greatest extent possible. The Labour Party's transport spokesperson, Deputy Duncan Smith, called last week in the Dáil for a co-ordinated approach to testing in order to get our aviation industry back up and operational. PCR testing could be used for passengers on the way out but we should be considering antigen testing for people on the way in to this State. Simply put, antigen testing should be on top of the existing structures, making those structures a bit more flexible where possible but at no time weakening what we already have in place.

I am sure we were all delighted to hear the excellent news at the NPHET briefing last week when the CMO, Dr. Holohan, informed us that we are now experiencing near-immolation of Covid-19 in the vaccinated population. As important and vital to our futures as that is, at the same briefing Dr. Holohan, when asked about antigen testing once again, stated that NPHET was confident that antigen testing should be used in many situations. Indeed, we were informed that there are pilot antigen tests planned for and progressing at third level, for example. Currently, however, we do not have any indication of when and if antigen testing will be used for foreign travel and that must change. In that context, I welcome the fact that the Minister of State is writing to the Minister for Health on the matter.Of course, several European countries, including Denmark, Germany, France and Italy, are already accepting antigen testing to allow entry. There appears to be widespread use of antigen testing in many different industries in countries such as Canada, where the evidence is that such testing has identified the virus in many cases, thereby preventing the mass spread of this terrible virus in that country.

We must realise the importance of the aviation industry to Ireland. Ireland is an island on the edge of Europe. Some 143,000 lives and livelihoods are directly connected to Irish aviation and are dependent on it. There can be no doubt the industry is struggling, as is evident from the loss of so many jobs in recent weeks. In other countries such as Germany, direct state intervention coupled with the use of multiple testing options are seeing the beginning of a revival. It is time we used all the tools available to us to help this industry and, most importantly, those whose lives depend upon it. The EU digital green certificate will make a much-needed difference. We must see its further detail and it being rolled out, which seemed to begin in this House this morning. That roll-out must be accompanied by an accelerated pilot scheme on antigen testing. We must use every tool available to save the industry. It simply will not survive a second summer of grounded flights and empty airports. We must protect the greatest number of the 143,000 jobs and the families and people behind them.