Paul Murphy urges mandatory hotel quarantine over at-home rules
Paul Murphy criticised the government's Covid management in a parliamentary exchange, saying the recent quarantine changes are a gamble and urging mandatory hotel quarantine. He argued the core problem is at-home quarantine, not merely increasing isolation from five to ten days, and questioned PCR testing compliance.
Quarantine policy critique
Paul Murphy challenged the Taoiseach's claim that no gambles were being taken on Covid, arguing the government is making a choice by retaining at-home quarantine. He said the shift from five to ten days misses the point because many cannot safely self-isolate at home and supports and testing compliance are unclear.
Delta variant concern
Murphy warned about the threat of the Delta variant becoming dominant and stressed the need to be mindful of its dangers. He said the government must be ready to act quickly if the situation changes.
Case for mandatory hotel quarantine
He advocated for mandatory hotel quarantine as a more effective way to slow the spread of Delta, noting evidence that at-home quarantine is flawed for many people. He referenced a figure of about 2.7% positivity among those who went through mandatory hotel quarantining.
Aviation and policy balance
Murphy acknowledged the tension between strict public-health measures and the aviation sector, noting relief has been provided to airlines and airports. He argued there must be a balance to protect public health while recognising the importance of international connectivity for a small open society.
Evidence, advice and inquiry
Murphy said the government has acted on advice that recent measures were low-to-medium risk and noted improving figures since May, but he expressed hope for a public inquiry into Covid management so that decisions can be judged in full. He also raised the question of how many returning travellers receive PCR tests after five days under the current regime.
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Thanks, Cian Corle. The Taoiseach said that he hasn't taken any gambles in terms of Covid. I just don't think that's historically accurate. Ultimately, I hope that we have a public inquiry into the management of Covid and it'll be for them to judge. But he also says, and this is very much for us today, that there's no gamble being taken at the moment. I mean, there is. There's a gamble, or you can use a different word, a choice, or whatever, being made. It's clear that you accept that there is a problem. One, with the threat of the Delta variant becoming dominant here. Two, that our quarantine regime, for those coming from England, Scotland, Wales, has been inadequate, and therefore the government is changing the nature of that. But the problem that I see is the way that the nature of it is being changed. What's being changed is the length of time. So going from five days to ten days at home. And it seems to me, there's strong evidence to suggest that the problem isn't mainly with the length of time. It's the fact that it's at home quarantine. I wonder, for example, what percentage of all those who are supposed to be at home quarantining have gotten a PCR test after five days. That would be an interesting statistic to see. Because the main point is the flaws in the at-home quarantine model, because of very many people who don't have a home where they can self-isolate, where they can quarantine safely because they share a home, and so on. And for many others who can't do it with the kind of supports that would come with a proper mandatory hotel quarantine regime. So the government is making a choice, and the government is taking a gamble in not going for mandatory hotel quarantine, which would surely be more effective at slowing down the spread of Delta. Deputy Mayor De Bruyneerts andere Deputy Mayor De Bruyneerts Deputy Mayor Deputy Mayor Deputy Mayor Deputy Mayor introduced in terms of protecting public health. I think there's about 2.7% positivity in those who've come through mandatory hotel quarantining. But also there's balance to be struck. There are choices and balances. And the vast majority of the House have been criticizing government in the last two to three weeks because of aviation and the impact on aviation that COVID's impact on travel has had and what opposition deputies have asserted as a government policy in relation to the situation regarding aviation. People can't have it both ways. And there's a balance to be struck too also in making sure that we have some semblance of an aviation sector when COVID is over and as we emerge from COVID. And I just put that out there. It's something that we need to consider. And we have funded and provided a whole lot of relief resources to airlines and to the airports. But notwithstanding that, it's having an impact across Europe and it's having an impact here as well. And as a small open society, we do depend a lot on international connectivity. But that said, we've acted in accordance with the advice so far. And the advice we've received in respect of the decisions we've taken for June and July is that those measures are low to medium risk. And that's the advice that we've received. And again, the figures so far, you know, since May, we've been improving on a consistent basis now in relation to managing the virus, managing the disease spread. That said, we are very mindful of the dangers of the Delta variant and certainly won't be slow to act. Thank you, Taoiseach. We need to move to question nine. Thank you, Taoiseach.
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