Tóibín Calls on Government to Prioritise Public Health At Irish Airports

Today at Leaders’ Questions Aontú leader Peadar Tóibín TD has called on the government to prioritise Public Health at Irish Airports. He stated;

“I want to acknowledge all the work that the government has done over the last 2 months. The development of this crisis has been very difficult to manage due to its enormity and the fact that we do not still fully understand all elements of the virus and its behaviour through society. However the role of the opposition is to propose solutions, to scrutinise and push the government at all times to ensure better outcomes for the Irish people”.

“Ireland’s Covid-19 Mortality Rate is the 12th highest in the world. We have one of the highest number of fatalities in Nursing Home settings in the world. These are shocking figures given that we are an Island nation, that we saw the crisis unfold in other countries first and had a head start in preparation and that we have a young dispersed population”.

“It was wrong not to stop flights from the north of Italy at the start of this crisis. It was wrong to tell people who were returning from northern Italy to circulate as normal if they had no symptoms. It was wrong not to risk asses at the airports”.

“You might say this is hindsight and history. Not Really. Hundreds of seasonal workers are landing in Ireland to fruit pick this summer. I raised this issue last week. The Chief Medical Officer stated that evening that this was not good public health policy in a global pandemic”.

“Statements from your office, Taoiseach varied from “these are essential workers” in the morning to “you shared the concerns of the CMO and were seeking an urgent review of the practice” in the evening. It has since transpired that you and your government lobbied the EU to allow for the movements of these seasonal workers”.

Taoiseach will you clearly outline what is the government policy on this? Will this practice continue or will public health advice he followed. Will you ensure that we do better that leaflets at our airports and ensure that we create is medical risk assessment teams”.

The Irish political system is radically broken

In Ireland the vast majority of elected representatives put a finger in the air to check which way the political wind is blowing. They have one eye on their leaders – seeking brownie points – and another eye keeping their seat safe. If elected reps shut up and do as they’re told, they are promoted; if they stand up for what they believe in, they are demoted. No wonder we have the political class we have. No wonder one point one billion euro is being buried in a hole under the National Children’s Hospital and that Stormont is in stalemate.

Throughout Ireland, many people are now afraid to say what they feel, many are afraid to respectfully engage on a range of different topics. Many feel there is a new censorship and a new political correctness in Ireland, that opposition to the establishment is being deleted.

Respectful opposition is not the enemy. Respectful opposition is a critical element of a functional democracy. Aontú will have the backbone to stand up, without fear, for you.