Sharon Keogan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

As we prepare for Christmas, I must once again voice my serious concerns about the division we have created in our country in the past year. Perhaps one of the scariest things is that it almost seems normal now. We have already become used to being told we can do this and we cannot do that. Seeing the online discussions in the UK, which is planning its own Covid pass, and the legitimate disquiet, disappointment and hurt being expressed by individuals has brought it back up for me.

I am sure many of us read about the condition of Mr. Anthony O'Connor in yesterday's edition of The Irish Times. He is a family man from Louth who has battled a rare and chronic neurological disorder for his entire life. He spent seven weeks in hospital at the age of four after receiving the polio vaccine. He needs to go to the gym four times a week, as recommended by his occupational therapy team, to keep his strength up and now he cannot go at all because the Department of Health and the HSE have not developed a system to allow for a medically exempt vaccine pass. The NHS was able to develop and implement such a system alongside the normal one. Why have we been unable to do the same?

As we come into the Christmas season, a time for togetherness, family and friends, I cannot help but think of the lines we have drawn between the people of this country. Even as we mourn the mistakes of Ireland past, I fear that in years to come we too may find ourselves judged by what we did in the name of the greater societal good.