Health Minister Stephen Donnelly says no change will be made in mandatory hotel quarantine law
DUBLIN: Despite strong criticism from European Union neighbours and the European Commission, Health Minister Stephen Donnelly is unwilling to make any changes to the mandatory hotel quarantine law. Ireland’s health minister has also said that he will not apologise to the European Commission, the Italian ambassador or anyone else.
The Minister of Health strongly defended the mandatory hotel quarantine law, amid public criticism from the European Commission and the Italian ambassador.
Those who have been fully vaccinated are exempted from the mandatory hotel quarantine, no further changes
Minister Donnelly responded to the criticism after announcing changes, including the exclusion of those who had been fully vaccinated from the mandatory hotel quarantine.
Mr. Donnelly said: “What’s fundamental is that we protect the people living in this country from COVID and from variants and I make no apologies to the Commission, to the Italian ambassador or anybody else for putting in place the measures that we believe and our public health teams believe in.”
He also said that the mandatory hotel quarantine system would not be reviewed due to the concerns of the European Union.
The minister said the provision exempting those who have been fully vaccinated from the hotel quarantine will come into effect soon. They have now been advised to quarantine at home. “These regulations will be drafted and signed in the coming days,” he said.
The mandatory hotel quarantine booking portal will restart on Saturday, April 17, the health minister said. The minister said the hotel room capacity has been increased in view of the high potential for increase in bookings in the coming weeks. By April 26, 1607 hotel rooms will be in service.
Of those who went to the mandatory hotel quarantine, 18 were COVID-19 positive. The minister pointed out that four of these are new variants. “Mandatory hotel quarantine is a very important public health measure and ensures we continue to have the strongest border biosecurity measures in Europe,” the minister said.
Sixteen more countries have been added to the mandatory hotel quarantine list. With this, 75 countries, including France, the United States, Italy and Turkey, are now in the Category Two list.
Commission says it is against EU rules
The European Commission has raised concerns over the extension of Ireland’s COVID-19 mandatory hotel quarantine to key member states. Officials also questioned whether the new law was “in line with EU law and whether they are proportionate and fair.”
Ireland has added 12 EU member states to its ‘Red List’. These countries include Austria, Belgium, France, Luxembourg and Italy. Brussels agrees that the proposed restrictions are a matter for each national government. However, when it comes to EU citizens’ rights, such as the right to free movement, the Brussels executive reserves the right to assess such measures.
The Italian ambassador, Paolo Serpi, accused the mandatory quarantine of being discriminatory. The Italian ambassador called on the communities to unite against this law, which is affecting the Italian community in Ireland. Mr. Serpi added that he hopes Ireland will reconsider this matter.
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