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LAST UPDATE | 20 Dec 2020
THE GOVERNMENT IS considering imposing additional travel restrictions on movement from the United Kingdom for two days.
It comes after a number of European countries imposed bans on flights arriving from the UK.
Speaking to RTÉ’s This Week Programme, Health Minister Stephen Donnelly said there will be an announcement later today regarding potential travel restrictions from the UK.
He said the government was looking at flights and ferries coming from Britain into Ireland and that the government was giving the matter serious consideration.
Belgium earlier announced it was suspending flight and train arrivals from Britain from midnight after the UK detected a coronavirus variant suspected to be more infectious.
Prime Minister Alexander De Croo told Belgian television channel VRT the ban will be in place for at least 24 hours.
Belgium’s travel suspension from the UK would affect flights and the Eurostar train service that runs from London.
Italy has also confirmed it will suspend flights from the UK.
Earlier, the Dutch Government said it has banned all passenger flights from Britain after finding the first case of the new strain that is circulating in the UK.
The ban, from 6am local time until 1 January, came hours after Britain announced a stay at home order for part of the country to slow the new variant.
“An infectious mutation of the Covid-19 virus is circulating in the United Kingdom. It is said to spread more easily and faster and is more difficult to detect,” the Dutch health ministry said in a statement.
The Dutch public health body, the RIVM, therefore “recommends that any introduction of this virus strain from the United Kingdom be limited as much as possible by limiting and/or controlling passenger movements.”
The health ministry added that a “case study in the Netherlands at the beginning of December revealed a virus with the variant described in the United Kingdom.”
Experts were looking at how the infection happened and whether there were related cases.
Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s cabinet had now taken the “precautionary decision” to ban flights from Britain, the statement said, adding that other forms of transport were still under review.
He urged Dutch citizens not to travel unless strictly necessary.
“Over the next few days, together with other EU member states, (the government) will explore the scope for further limiting the risk of the new strain of the virus being brought over from the UK,” the statement said.
The Netherlands is under a five-week lockdown until mid-January with schools and all non-essential shops closed to slow a surge in the virus.
Germany is also considering barring flights from the UK and from South Africa, where the variant has also been detected, a health ministry source indicated.
The moves come after scientists on the UK Government’s New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (Nervtag) concluded the mutant strain identified by the Public Health England laboratories at Porton Down was spreading more quickly.
The UK also informed the World Health Organisation of its findings.
Sir Patrick Vallance, the Government’s chief scientific adviser, said the new variant, known as VUI 202012/01, was thought to have originated in either London or Kent in September.
By November, it was accounting for 28% of new infections in the region and by early December that had risen to 60%.
“This new variant not only moves fast but it is becoming the dominant variant,” he said.
He said however there was no evidence it causes a more severe illness than the original virus, while the “working assumption ” of scientists was that the vaccines that had been developed should be able to deal with it.
Meanwhile, Dr Cillian de Gascun, a member of NPHET, said earlier this week that based on the available sequence data, this new variant has not been detected in Ireland to date. He said this highlights the importance of surveillance.
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And yet as our closest neighbor we do nothing for fear of offending. My two next door neighbours have daughters and there family’s all coming back from London over Xmas. None will isolate and none will be called out on it by Irish health authorities.
@ChuckE: The HSE don’t have the resources to roll out the vaccine and are on course to make a complete and total stones of the whole thing. Tracking people coming in and out of the country won’t even be on their radar I reckon.
@ChuckE: if its been around in London since September, and considering the few flights still flying are predominantly to/from London anyway, it may already be too late. It may already be here but undetected to date.
@ChuckE: could not agree more. Nothing is done then we will all suffer when the new strain hits Ireland
@ChuckE: very true it is only a matter of time before we have it here. They do nothing to enforce restrictions for people returning from U.K.
@ChuckE: they were saying in the British press that you will need to prove that your travel is essential . They may not be able to com
@David Corrigan: there are thousands of GP’s & paramedics, nurses in the country. There is absolutely no reason for difficulties vaccinating 3,9 million people. The only reason would be incompetence & opportunistic lobby groups using this time as leverage to make demands.
@ChuckE: your poor neighbours having you snooping on their lives & sharing it on comment boxes.
@Isabel Oliveira: I agree Isabel. They would have nearly a year to plan for this and still they will struggle and make a mess of things. How they constantly get away with it I will never know.
@David Corrigan: totally agree but the had the time to prepare and track and trace in place. I know two entire family’s coming from London, 1 from Italy and maybe four other single people coming from Oz. All coming home to stay with elderly parents. The government are an embarrassment but this is down to personal responsibility as much as anything
@D Mems: the first strain of this new version was only reported by the UK government last week. The fact that our government hasn’t even mentioned any form of flight/border restrictions means the have no intention of trying to stop it.
@sjr: it’s pretty easy to do if the will is there but I do see how it would be hard to enforce. That said I think some attempt to do so or at least discourage people from coming back should be made. Nothing but radio silence
@Isabel Oliveira: That & the fact we didn’t pre order vaccines from the various candidates & in the quantities needed. We signed up to the EU scheme & they didn’t pre-order the Pfizer candidate like the Americans did because of cost & by the time it was cleared to go production capabilities mean the EU can’t get its hands on sufficient doses.
@Joe Thorpe: We ordered 14 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine.
Also we can’t legally close our borders with the UK.
@Isabel Oliveira: couldn’t care less about offending them. You have proven yourself here as someone who supports the opening up if the country and having no one answer for the deaths of thousands. Your opinions are divisive unproven and irrelevant. I would like to see my poor neighbors still alive this time next year, their children don’t seem to have the same outlook
@Francis Devenney: No we didn’t, we didn’t pre order any doses we relied on the EU who decided the cost was prohibitive & only came to the party once it had passed muster with the health authorities in the United States & actually the European Medicines Agency still hasn’t given the green light. We ordered the required doses too late, the quantities we need simply aren’t available because they are honouring the pre-orders made by the nations that invested in the research upfront without guarantees. The Americans put their chips on all the boxes to guarantee their citizens got the first doses as they become available, we didn’t so we are in the queue with everyone else.
@Joe Thorpe: The Irish Govt has access to 14 million doses. What are you sprouting on about?
@GinandJetfuel: Where are the 14 million doses then? We don’t have access to them until they are here in our fridges. Pfizer isn’t Tesco they don’t ship a substitute item when the thing we ordered is out of stock. Where are our 14 million doses then? The EU made the order on our behalf & is making a few thousand doses available not what we need. The EU ordered 300 Million doses https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/IP_20_2081 We need two doses for the treatment to be affective for a population of 450 million so we need 900 million doses not 300 million & you think they are sending us 14 million for a population of 4.94 Million?
@ChuckE: Same story with a Cousin’s daughters in London, hopefully they’ll stay where they are..no business here.
@ianglen: I would love to see them all back but under safe circumstances
@Joe Thorpe: Ireland will have access to 14 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine. The EU ordered 300 million doses. The US only ordered 100 million doses. The US were offered more doses of Pfizer’s vaccine and turned them down, which the EU and Canada gladly accepted afterwards. Your spouting absolute nonsense here.
@Joe Thorpe: Here you go Joe.
@ChuckE: There are three very vulnerable family members there, so they should stop and think, I’d hope.
@ChuckE: , there is only one road leading out of rosslare harbour and I guarantee it will be packed with British vehicles coming off the ferry this coming week. Dangerous January coming up.
@David Corrigan: Only the HSE could employ one in every 21 people in the overall workforce and still have a staff shortage.
@ChuckE: ireland is now officially WOKE
@Joe Thorpe: the EU booked 200million pfizer doses that the US turned down. This was a minor scandal in the US last week. Also, Pfizer turned down countries’ offers of investment in the research, including the US. You are spouting one falsehood after tge next.
@ChuckE: Sounds awkward all right. And if your neighbours need help while isolating, after they’ve gone back? It’s tricky, something we all have to work around.
@David Corrigan:what your saying is right but it’s a personal responsibility as well. Why do they need to travel home this year !!!!. Hell if we get this in hand by the summer have a Christmas then. All these voxbox of people abroad saying Oh we have to come home !!!. My sisters cats aunt will be on there own. Etc
@David Corrigan: No SURPRISE there.
@ChuckE: can you provide one example where Isabel stated that no one should be held to account for deaths of thousands? Because, while I disagree with most of her points, and agree with some, one thing I’m sure of is that she never said what you just accused her of. You can disagree with someone without accusing them of something despicable like you just did. What a horrible person you must be if you think the horrendous lie you just said is OK.
@ChuckE: you call them out you tell them that you will report if they don’t isolate
Death could well be the Christmas present that these irresponsible traveler’s bring home to their families.
@Ger O’Reilly: bit dramatic.
@Ger O’Reilly: afraid much?
@Joan Featherstone: it’s not dramatic. We should shut down uk flights.
@Joan Featherstone: But not wrong
@Machiavellian: The people who say this is anything like a plot to strike fear into people are clearly the ones afraid to accept reality.
@Ger O’Reilly: I agree.I would be very reluctant to allow people coming from abroad into my home, family or not. It’s a big risk
@Brian Madden: it wouldn’t work.nothing to stop them flying into Belfast and driving down.
@Trish O’Leary-Dunne: yes but it still may slow it down.
@Ger O’Reilly: That’s one of those ones that sounds better in your head…
@Joan Featherstone: hardly dramatic it’s reality. Whose to say if you contract it that you don’t inadvertently kill a vulnerable member of your family or work colleague or member of society. That’s how serious it is.
@Joan Featherstone: they thrive on it.
@Trish O’Leary-Dunne: wrong. Border checks and proof of home address. It really is that simple. Press release to tell people it’s happening. It won’t stop all but surely it’s better than the void we now have
@Ger O’Reilly: No a weak government who should quarantine anyone coming in for 14 days , that would put a stop to 50000 travelling into Ireland.
@Joan Featherstone: perhaps the Dutch and the UK are being a bit dramatic also. And lack your wisdom.
@sjr: Easy enough to be clear, really. People only need to explain that if you come visiting from abroad in the middle of a pandemic, you’re out of the will!
@Ger O’Reilly: I’d imagine they would take 1 to 2 tests.
As most people in general population are not taking tests before seeing their families they could actually be lower risk than most people.
@Machiavellian: you’re so tough.
People on about banning flights. Think the genie is long out of the bottle…….
Had to go to the UK in September. Flight was full of Irish heading to London for the weekend.
Woman behind me “I am heading across for a few days to see my sister and go shopping”
Likely chance It’s already rampant across Europe including Ireland given the recent surges in cases
@Jack Inman: this is politically motivated by the Dutch and now EU. Dutch government refused ban flights to China, Italy, close borders with Belgium. But now, all of sudden an uncharacteristically quick decision made to ban UK flights and now other EU countries following swift. Based in what info? Cynical. All familiar with decision making process in Netherlands can see the real reason.
@Raymond Scott: just can’t deal with mass hysteria. People panicking won’t get us anywhere just like the rabble who were panic buying bog roll in March.
Closing borders to outsiders is all well and good but, it only works if you stop people going the other way. Covid more than likely hit us because of people holidaying in Italy and this strain will more than likely hit us because of little el ones going on their jollies to London.
That’s without the fact UK is one of the few countries actually studying variants with high level genome mapping….
@Raymond Scott: as conspiracy theories go the Dutch Conservative government conspiring against the UK hard right cabal due to Brexit is the most Bagshot crazy conspiracy I’ve read to date and I’ve read a lot of crazy shit on journal comments.
@Jas: not sure why you bring in the right/left spectrum. Not a determinant at all in this. Also Dutch government has 2 parties in coalition that are categorised as right but are not currently. So right in name only. You seem to be unaware if this, yet calling my view a conspiracy. This is about eu vs uk. Obviously orchestrated centrally in Brussels. I would have done same if i was party in the negotiation with opposing interests to UK. Even Ireland now joined in. Just saying new strain virus is secondary in this travel ban. I cant give you ablity to analyse critically and see patterns.
That is what this nation should doing. Banning flights than damaging families and damaging those who peace this Christmas
@Dolphins: ???????
@Peter donnelly: my thoughts exactly
@Dolphins: they can wait three months for vaccination. The UK is getting them even sooner.
@Dolphins: Any chance of speaking English?
@Dolphins: flights no uk think I new year good maybe
We need to act now to prevent this arriving. But we are probably too late. Don’t worry about offending Boris the clown. He doesn’t give a toss about Ireland or how Brexit will effect us.
Borris only has responsibility for the UK
@Teresa O’Halloran: bit of a jibe there ar Borris.
@Teresa O’Halloran: please tell me why he should.
Natural selection favours transmissability over lethality. It’s definitely not in the best interest of the virus to kill it’s host. This is why more deadly strains will head down evolutionary cul-de-sacs. Dead or dying hosts can’t exactly travel or socialise. For example, Ebola is a victim of it’s own lethality, burning it’s own proverbial bridges rather than attaining pandemic status. Milennia ago, the common Cold may have begun life as something far more destructive, but it’s endgame favoured contagion over destruction of the host, so it thrives. A more contagious but benign strain of Covid displacing it’s deadly forbears may be preferable until a successful vaccination program achieves global eradication.
@☘ ᕼEᖇITᗩGE STᗩᖴᖴ IᖇᎬᒪᗩᑎᗪ ᑭᖇO ᒪᎥᖴᎬ & CUᒪTUᖇᎬ: exactly. Lot of scare mongering talking of mutations – in an odd sort of way we are all either genetic clones or mutations in tiny ways. A faster reproducing or more successful strain will replace other strains and has happened many times already with SARS-COV-2. The original Chinese strain was replaced in Europe and spread from here to the Americas. More recently A20.EU strains came from Spain and is responsible for 60% of Irish cases since end of July and most of the European second wave. The idea is to keep the host alive and healthy and easy spreard to others… Despite perception, the virus is not trying to make people ill or kill them.
@Niall Ó Cofaigh: True. If a virus had intelligence, we’d almost believe that it was trying to broker a symbiotic relationship!
@Niall Ó Cofaigh: there is no scaremongering. The health service executives in Ireland Germany the UK France etc have all said it spreads faster but could be covered by current vaccinations. Information isn’t scaremongering
@☘ ᕼEᖇITᗩGE STᗩᖴᖴ IᖇᎬᒪᗩᑎᗪ ᑭᖇO ᒪᎥᖴᎬ & CUᒪTUᖇᎬ: A genuine question, does the pre symptomatic spread of this virus not allow it to spread enough before causing serious harm to its host and so differs from the likes of Ebola which only spreads after you become ill, which as you say in itself reduces the spread. Does the fact that sars-cov-2 appears to be most infectious 48 hours before and up to 48 hours after symptoms appear or basically before people are to ill to spread it, not allow the virus to combine contagion and destruction in a different way? Could it not easily survive by being very contagious and relatively more lethal because of its early infectious period?
@☘ ᕼEᖇITᗩGE STᗩᖴᖴ IᖇᎬᒪᗩᑎᗪ ᑭᖇO ᒪᎥᖴᎬ & CUᒪTUᖇᎬ: The fact that NPHET is not communicating this message suggests the CMO should be replaced with someone people will listen to. He has legions of adoring fans in the press and the paid bots shouting down fair questions, yet ordinary people don’t listen to him. Why?
@☘ ᕼEᖇITᗩGE STᗩᖴᖴ IᖇᎬᒪᗩᑎᗪ ᑭᖇO ᒪᎥᖴᎬ & CUᒪTUᖇᎬ: Not necessarily. When transmission rates are high, lethality rates become irrelevant. The first HIV strains were far more lethal than later variants, since few precautions were taken by carriers and thus transmission rates were high. It did not need to keep the host alive to ensure transmission. Transmissability is only favoured over lethality when transmission rates are interrupted or reduced.
@Michael Flynn: Unfortunately, before mutation to a less lethal strain or implementation of a successful vaccine, the collateral damage in terms of human lives means that countermeasures and reliance on a collective ‘behavioural immune system’, may be the only way to mitigate the spread in the short term.
@NotMyIreland: Yes. The ‘timebomb’ element is a worrying facet of the virus.
@☘ ᕼEᖇITᗩGE STᗩᖴᖴ IᖇᎬᒪᗩᑎᗪ ᑭᖇO ᒪᎥᖴᎬ & CUᒪTUᖇᎬ:
The strongest evidence for lethality from covid is for people who have poor lung health and vitamin D deficency.
Exposure to air pollution and other factors deplete vitamin D,
The receptors the Virus acts on is the one Vitamin D Protects against.
Explained here https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7326088/#!po=7.44681
@Rory Mac Daibhéid: Thanks for the link. The more information, the better.
@☘ ᕼEᖇITᗩGE STᗩᖴᖴ IᖇᎬᒪᗩᑎᗪ ᑭᖇO ᒪᎥᖴᎬ & CUᒪTUᖇᎬ:
You’re welcome.
There is an Irish University Professor that is keeps telling everyone who will listen it’s Fundamental to survival from covid, fundamental is her words.
Proof would be nice but I’d not wait to get proof but recommend it much like the social distancing, it’s essential.
https://www.newstalk.com/podcasts/breakfast-briefing/breakfast-briefing-17th-december-2020-tilda-lead-investigator-professor-rose-anne-kenny
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11845-020-02427-9
@Stephen Rogan: Agreed. Human behaviour is a major problem in containing transmission.
However, even the scourge that was AIDS could not propogate if it’s host was dead. The exception of course being contaminated blood transfusions as a vector, if the original donor was deceased prior to said transfusion.
Hopefully human behaviour will outsmart an enemy that doesn’t even have an IQ, but I’m open to correction.
@☘ ᕼEᖇITᗩGE STᗩᖴᖴ IᖇᎬᒪᗩᑎᗪ ᑭᖇO ᒪᎥᖴᎬ & CUᒪTUᖇᎬ: *’propagate’. Sorry.
Netherlands government as opposed to Irish one uses common sense less sparingly…
@BuffaloSoldiersky: they’re a basket case compared to us on Covid…
Meanwhile our lot will hold a cabinet meeting next Tuesday to discuss. ACT now!!!!
The amount of UK registered cars around Liffey valley shopping centre yesterday was unbelievable. I would think it’s probably too late to act now but maybe better late then never.
@Gerard Cummins: No they are not UK cars , there from the North of Ireland part of our country.
@Jimmy Mac: So UK reg cars. Fact. Build a bridge.
@David Harold: We are joined by road from Derry to Cork
@David Harold: his point is that there is no evidence of this strain in NI. Yet
@Gerard Cummins: yes I agree with you. Theres a difference between Northern Ireland cars and english cars to the poster who thought he knew everything. I too have seen a lot of English reg cars here full to the brim with stuff they have packed to bring over. I think the new strain is here, just not detected.
@Jimmy Mac: no they are not. There’s a difference between english reg and Northen cars. I’ve seen a lot of english cars over here.
@Jimmy Mac: as a truck driver over and back to the UK through holyhead all week the boats were full of English reg cars coming over supposed to be going out tonight but if locking ferries down not going to be stuck over there
If they forbid flights from the U.K. they will forbid flights from Ireland. That’s the reality & certainly not what we need now. We have enough to worry about without no transportation chains in place. The mutations are not imported they happen in infected individuals regardless of travel.
@Isabel Oliveira: The mutations stay in the population within which they mutated if it was not for travel. The chances of two identical mutations simultaneously occurring in two separate populations is almost non existent. Travel is the only thing that spreads them.
@Isabel Oliveira: I think it is what we need now, especially over the next 2/3 weeks
@Isabel Oliveira: Don’t talk rubbish. The coronavirus along with ll its mutations and varitions is transmitted the sme way. So to stop transmission stop travelling about. It’s not exactly rocket science is it?
@Isabel Oliveira: If flights are forbidden from UK then the planes wont get here to make the return journey!
Cillian de paul Gascoigne says the virus research lab hasn’t detected the new mutant variant do they even know what they are looking for. Secondly we are unfortunately guaranteed that this new strain is here already because of how easy it is to come from the UK to Ireland.All travel from England to Scotland is banned,all travel from the SE of England including London is banned to other English regions yet to travel from London to Ireland is no problem at all we are flooked.
CAN THIS SO CALLED GOVERNMENT NOT MAKE A DECISION FOR THEMSELVES?
@Pauline Fedigan:
Stop shouting. If Airlines cancelled their flights then people wouldn’t travel so stop always trying to blame the Government for everything. How do you think this virus got into Ireland and spread ra
@Pauline Fedigan: Shower of merchant bail out bankers that Mehole Martin and Donnelly bring ineptitude to a new level
Just close the border. If they can manage 5 km travel restrictions for residents of the Republic then they can also manage the same with the border.
Not fancy having another lockdown due to this insanity.
To the “we should do same lot”, ain’t gonna work now in banning UK flights. Horse bolted long long ago. Dare say the new strain is here weeks. Fly Britain to Belfast and bus it drive to Dublin, Cead Mile Feckin Failte! 1 look at temple bar last night, very very very busy. Irish paying 8e a pint? Possible with GAA final heads, Doubt it very much. Now who usually frequents Temple Bar hmmmm? Anyways it’s a total sh!tshow.
Stop all travel from the uk
Why procrastinate ? Just close out flights, sailings and our border and keep our people and country safe. I can’t understand this dithering attitude as if we owed a debt. Let’s be decisive for the common good.
@Chris Gavican: Its our people coming home???
@Anne Busher Collins: so???? Just one year people should stop travelling
Why can’t Irish Authorities demand a cert from incoming travelers, saying they are covid free. in other words they have to get screened 3 days before arriving here. This is the norm in other countries but of course not here, where we have to learn the hard way.
And the flights and ferries continue to arrive. Ah well hope the older folk enjoy probably their final Christmas. No thanks to their relatives arriving here from abroad.
do unto others as you would have them do unto you
There is little point banning flights from Britain to Ireland, they will just fly into Belfast instead and drive down the road.
We should do the same
Considering. Do it yesterday.
Keep them out
Will the Pfizer Vaccine include immunity from this mutant strain I wonder, there always something
@Ger Murray: The Pfizer vaccine was developed before this strain was identified so probably not. But the Pfizer vaccine (as well as the Moderna one) is configurable as it is based on mRNA rather than using a weakened version of the virus as in traditional vaccines.
@GinandJetfuel: this has been well answered that the belief is that it will.
The virus is ALWAYS mutating. Our immune systems don’t need it to be the exact same to recognise it. There is some tolerance for variants. Authorities have already said they believe the developed vaccines are still adequate.
@Ger Murray: “Will the Pfizer Vaccine include immunity from this mutant strain I wonder”. There is every chance that it will.
@Gerard: But we don’t know for sure. A new strain could mean either outcome.
@GinandJetfuel: thanks stay safe
Ah, far-sighted of our government to make provision for the Irish people currently reliant on CBD to control their medical conditions. Glad they saved them from having to travel to the Netherlands to access supplies. For once, a timely move to assist a small minority in need.
Even if we banned flights to the U.K. it’ll get here via the six counties. Can’t see Arlene ever agreeing to stopping flights in/out of Derry/Belfast to mainland U.K.
Cancel all flight from UK. Catch a plane to the North. Drive South. Anyone wanting to travel can do it that way.
Vax are on the way, brainwashed lads are not brainwashed enough…
@heavyhits: What?
We are all really happy to allow people in from the UK so that we can blame THEM for the January lockdown and deflect the blame from all the Irish shopping in Northern Ireland, shopping in crowded shops, eating and drinking in packed restaurants, drinking in barns and sheds, and of course the “essential” house party. Need I go on….
Will the new variant be called the BREXIT-STRAIN
Wallop. Government considers… slow, slow, slow, virus mutation arrives… government says nothing we could have done…
They wont notice Brexit has come and gone if they can’t fly to Europe lol
What good will 48 hours do?
Just do it before it is too late
Only 9 months late eh Tony ?
It’s happening again. Just like BSE, the UK gets honest and admits a problem, gets treated like it’s got leprosy, yet the rest of Europe has the same problem indeed it most likely originated in Europe, but as usual, they stay silent and keep it a secret.
Actions not words are required. Too much talk and no action, all the time.
Just do it! It may not be as effective as continental ban and some will get in but it would act as a deterrent to many.
Not the time for cautious consideration.
have your say