David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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1844. To ask the Minister for Health his views on a matter raised in correspondence (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19116/21]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The Health Act 1947, as amended, provides that all persons arriving in Ireland from a designated state, or having travelled through a designated state in the previous 14 days, are required to undergo mandatory quarantine in a designated facility unless they are an exempted traveller under the Act. The full list of exempted travellers is available on gov.ie/quarantine.

Quarantine of persons arriving from areas with a high incidence of variants of concern is considered a deterrent against the emergence of such variants in the state and as such all persons arriving from those designated states are required to undergo mandatory quarantine in a designated facility, regardless of vaccination status, unless otherwise exempt.

The Government gives continuing consideration to wider policy on international travel as informed by the epidemiological situation and public health advice. This includes the possibility of future exemptions, including for certain categories of essential workers as appropriate.

In some limited circumstances such as the emergency repatriation of Irish citizens abroad, the Department of Foreign Affairs may be able to advise or provide assistance to such citizens when they are arranging their stay in a mandatory quarantine designated facility. Such persons should contact their local embassy or mission in such emergency situations.