Dispute between ministers over self-isolation of people arriving from overseas; Varadkar contradicts Donnelly’s stand that people should stay in hotels
DUBLIN: Dispute between the Tánaiste and the Minister of Health over the self-isolation conditions to be observed by those coming from abroad. The fact that the cabinet members themselves speak differently on this issue has paved the way for opposition criticism.
When Leo Varadkar said that people coming from abroad should not isolate themselves from members of their own household for 14 days, Health Minister Stephen Donnelly was of the opposite opinion.
Mr. Varadkar said that an individual would be exempt from quarantine if he/she became COVID negative five days after arriving in the country. Meanwhile, Minister Donellly says people who have returned from abroad and have lived in shared accommodation are at risk for others, so they should go into self-isolation for 14 days.
Varadkar explained that a person who comes into the country with a negative PCR certificate within the last 72 hours is the same as a person who is closely associated with a positive case. He confirmed that the person would be exempted from the quarantine conditions five days after arriving in the country with a negative PCR test.
Mr Varadkar said issues related to home quarantine need to be addressed in the coming days. Those coming from ‘schedule two’ countries, including high-risk South Africa and Latin American countries must stay in hotel room quarantine for 14 days. You have to stay there for two weeks without considering the result. People from ‘schedule one’ countries who are considered less risky should go for home quarantine.
Mr. Varadkar said the new quarantine provisions require primary and secondary legislation. “I would be afraid to live in a country where the government could detain anyone for 14 days against their will without passing a law,” he said.
Meanwhile, opposition party leaders have come out against the forced quarantine plans. They criticized it as “unenforceable”. The leaders of Sinn Féin, Labour and the Social Democrats have demanded that a mandatory quarantine system be introduced for all travellers to the country.
The opposition also points out that all the people in the government, including ministers Stephen Donnelly and Simon Coveney and Varadkar, are speaking against each other.
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