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People travelling from some European Union countries may soon need to isolate in Ireland\u2019s mandatory quarantine hotels.<\/p>\nPeople travelling from some European Union countries may soon need to isolate in Ireland\u2019s mandatory quarantine hotels.<\/p>\n
Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan said that more EU countries are to be added to the quarantine list.<\/p>\n
France, Italy and Germany could be included, with Mr Ryan saying the Government has been responding to the public\u2019s concerns over the high rates of infections in those countries.<\/p>\n
\u201cAdditional countries will be added \u2013 for some people that presents a real burden but it\u2019s a burden I think we\u2019ll have to bear because we want to err on the side of caution,\u201d Mr Ryan said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI would expect that a sort of decision like this would probably be approved by Cabinet next Tuesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt would probably take us a number of days after that to implement whatever measures, but that\u2019s what I was expecting.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Ryan said the Government would heed expert advice.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are going to have to adapt because the numbers will change and therefore the circumstances will change and the advice will change, and we will have to be fairly quick and adapt,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI expect the expert advice will show what we can all see in the daily numbers that the rate of incidence is very high and the concern about variance is very significant. So, we will heed that advice.\u201d<\/p>\n
It comes as 26 more countries were added to the list last week, with Israel, Albania, Palestine, Bahrain, Nigeria, the Philippines, Monaco, Oman and Qatar among the new additions.<\/p>\n
Plans to include the US, France, Italy and Germany were abandoned amid division among Government members.<\/p>\n
However, the Government now looks set to add some of those countries in the next week.<\/p>\n
Minister for Higher Education Simon Harris said that the public health advice on mandatory quarantine is necessary.<\/p>\n
Speaking outside Government Buildings in Dublin, he said hotel quarantine presents challenges to people but added: \u201cThe virus doesn\u2019t care whether you were abroad because you were a student or not a student.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe reason we have mandatory quarantine in place is to prevent new variants coming into the country.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter whether that new variant is brought in by a student, a worker, someone on a holiday, that won\u2019t matter diddly squat to people in this country if we bring in new variants.\u201d<\/p>\n
He continued: \u201cThe approach we take is we follow the public health advice.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe legislation is clear.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the moment there is only one European country on the mandatory quarantine list, and that is Austria.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously if that approach changes next week we will provide advice and information and also practical support to students returning from the other European countries.\u201d<\/p>\n