Brendan Smith calls for cross-border Covid-19 cooperation and app links
Brendan Smith argued for maximum cross-border cooperation to tackle Covid-19 and warned that Brexit could disrupt health data transfers. He urged the Government to amend regulations to give Gardaí power to restrict movements when necessary, to investigate high incidence in Cavan and Monaghan, and to ensure contact tracing apps can interoperate.
Cross-border cooperation
He called for maximum cooperation across the island, saying Covid-19 recognises neither border nor identity. He reminded the Tánaiste of long-standing all-Ireland cooperation on serious animal disease issues and said the same level of sharing information is needed to fight Covid-19.
Local Covid-19 incidence and health resources
He highlighted that his border county of Cavan has the highest incidence of Covid-19 and neighbouring Monaghan has the third highest. He urged the Minister for Health to investigate urgently and, if necessary, to provide additional resources to both public and private healthcare providers to address any local deficiencies, while commending local healthcare personnel for their work.
Garda powers and movement restrictions
He appealed to the Government to amend recent regulations to enable Gardaí to restrict the movements of people when necessary, regardless of whether residents live outside the State. He repeated the call for those regulatory changes to give authorities the tools needed to protect communities.
Contact tracing apps and Brexit data risks
He noted contact tracing apps are being developed by the HSE and in Northern Ireland by the NHS on different models and warned that, without a transition extension after the 31st of December, Britain will become a third country under GDPR. He said that would prohibit transfers of personal data including personal health data and stressed the need for tracing apps to interoperate so they can help the public protect themselves.
We publish thousands of recordings to make Irish politics transparent and resistant to manipulation. Spotted an error? Report it — together we are building a reliable archive of Irish politics.
Just a few quick comments. In the context of both Brexit and Covid, we need maximum cooperation on all Ireland bases. I appeal again to the Government, as it did some weeks ago, to amend the recent regulations and enable Gardaí to restrict the movements of people when necessary, regardless of their residents being outside our state. I am concerned that my own border county of Cavan continues to have the highest incidence of Covid in the county, and my neighbouring county of Monaghan, and part of my constituency as well, has the third highest incidence of COVID. Some time ago, I appealed to the Minister for Health to have this high incidence in both counties investigated as a matter of urgency, and if necessary, provide the additional resources to both our public and private healthcare providers to tackle any identified deficiency in health provision locally. I commend very strongly the inspirational work of our healthcare personnel at local level. Going back, Tanaiste, as you know very well, over many years, there has been excellent cooperation, and in all Ireland, and dealing with serious animal disease issues. We need that level of cooperation and sharing of information again to fight Covid-19. That would ease in some way the stress and worry endured by the people I represent on this side of the border, and the people I know and speak with on both sides of the border every day of the week. COVID-19. COVID-19 recognises neither border nor identity. I understand that contact tracing apps are being developed here by the HSE, and in Northern Ireland by the NHS, and they're based on different models. COVID-19. We will have the added problem of data transfers to and from Britain after the 31st of December Brexit departure. If there is no transition extension, then Britain will be a third country for data protection rules. And under GDPR, the transfer of personal data will be prohibited. That includes personal health data. North and south, we are very interdependent, and we need key health tools, such as those apps, to speak to each other in the best interests of citizens on all of this island. Let tracing apps do what they are supposed to do, namely help the public to protect themselves. Thank you.
Thank you for downloading 🙏
If you publish this material on social media, we would be very grateful if you tagged VideoParliament. It helps us reach more people and keep building a transparent archive of Irish politics.
