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LAST UPDATE | 1 Dec 2021
TAOISEACH MICHEÁL MARTIN has said the requirement that primary school children wear masks is not a rule he is “entirely 100% comfortable with”.
Micheal Martin said the new rules are “challenging” but there has to be “common sense, discretion and practical approach” applied to the requirements.
The Taoiseach’s comments come as the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) this afternoon defended guidance requiring children aged nine and over to wear face masks in indoor settings, insisting that the proposal is in line with advice from the State’s health watchdog.
Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan recommended the measure to Health Minister Stephen Donnelly last week, citing advice from the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa) and the level of Covid-19 infection among children aged 5 to 12.
The health watchdog, which occasionally advises NPHET on certain measures, met in August to discuss whether the minimum age for the wearing of face masks should be reduced.
However, Hiqa’s advice to NPHET in September said that “there should be no reduction in the minimum age for requirements… with respect to mask use in the community”.
“The potential benefits of a requirement or recommendation for children to wear face masks must outweigh concerns regarding potential harms associated with face mask use,” its report said.
The watchdog added that its advice should be “kept under review” and be informed by national and international data, and that existing Covid-19 measures – including those relating to in-school and after-school interactions – should be encouraged.
But speaking at a NPHET media briefing today, Deputy CMO Dr Ronan Glynn defended the new guidance.
He said that HIQA had issued “a clear message” in its guidance that it should be kept under review by NPHET and revisited at a later date.
“The particular point they made, I suppose, was that if the epidemiological situation was to change significantly, that would need to be looked at again and ultimately dealt with,” Glynn said.
“So all of the scientific evidence and the background evidence is largely there from October and September. It changed very substantially between then and now.”
‘It is challenging’
In the Dáil this afternoon, Taoiseach Micheál Martin was challenged by Labour leader Alan Kelly over the legal enforcement of the new regulations.
Martin said:
“It is challenging, deputy. I appreciate that. It’s not a place I am entirely 100% comfortable with, as a person, as a parent, and as a former teacher myself.
“I’m very much alive to different situations in different schools. We have to be sensitive to all of that.”
Kelly asked whether school principals and boards of management will be legally protected when enforcing the wearing of face masks.
He said that children have a constitutional right to education and queried what legal protection schools would have to refuse children entry if they are not wearing masks.
“What is the legal basis for it and have you guaranteed that principals are legally protected here?” Kelly asked.
“If they refuse entry of a kid into school, are they legally protected by this state? Because I know that the PDF that went out had no signature on it and wasn’t on headed paper.”
Martin said: “In the middle of a global pandemic, where school principals and management are applying public health policy, they will be protected.”
Kelly also criticised the Government for how it communicated the new policy.
He said: “Surely there should have been a communications process whereby principals are engaged, unions are engaged with, and also children are engaged.
“There’s a huge difference from a development point of view between a nine-year-old and a 15-year-old.
“This can’t just happen overnight, and that’s what’s been asked.
“I understand the minister has now clarified that there are a couple of days grace, but ultimately this is mandatory and that is fine, but the communications process around it is frankly diabolical.
“Principals are left this morning at school gates wondering what they’re meant to do.”
Martin said that school management will know their community and how to engage with their community.
“Obviously, in terms of special needs children there won’t be a requirement if it is not suitable,” Martin added.
“I think there has to be common sense, discretion, practical approach to this.
“I think in the main there will be. Overall, we have to look at this as a collective society.”
This morning, Norma Foley, the Minister for Education, said that she accepted that some children may struggle with wearing masks.
“I recognise that there may well be issues of exception, where there may be difficultly for a child in terms of wearing a mask,” Foley told Newstalk Breakfast.
“A child with complex needs, for example, or if a child has any difficulty with breathing or other relevant medical conditions, there will be exemptions and they will be very clear exemptions in that respect.
“But I also want to say that this operates at second level, it has operated seamlessly at second level.
“And again there has been extraordinary buy-in from all concerned”.
Contains reporting from Lauren Boland and Press Association
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The virus is not dangerous for children. They should not be muzzled, end of discussion.
@Mags Murphy: Young children are more likely than their older siblings to transmit SARS-CoV-2 in their households, according to an analysis of public health records in Ontario, Canada
@Mags Murphy: How many times do people need to be told, it is to stop the spread of the virus regardless of it being dangerous for children or not.. And will you stopped with the dramatics “muzzled” my god…
@Dave: it is muzzled, let the children get covid and get their natural immunity, wonderful. For children in the overwhelming 99.99% of cases they will shake it off. If they bring it home to their vaccinated families, what odds. The vaccine protects u right. Asking a 9 year old to wear a mask is too big a request…..
@Mags Murphy: yes and children spread Covid to others who won’t just shake it off. It’s like the clocks have been wound back to Feb 2020 and we’re explaining the basic guidelines to protect oneself and others again.
@Mags Murphy: Too big a request, in all fairness Mags… Have you actually sat down with your 9 year old and spoken with him/her about it and asked how they would feel wearing a mask?
@Mags Murphy: Yes the virus is not dangerous to children but they can pass easily pass the virus onto to others like the vulnerable and elderly
@Declan O’Farrell: yes same as it was a month ago when they werent wearing a mask, it’s a childs time to be a child, mask wearing will affect their education, their communication skills, their emotions. if u want your nine year old to wear a mask to protect granny knock yourself out but dont make it compulsory for my child out
@Mags Murphy: no one is being muzzled. Muzzled applies to animals,not humans.. or do you think children are animals, given your use of the word muzzle?
@Mags Murphy: Let’s put them in children only environments then, with child teachers, child doctors, child bus drivers. We can put them on a child island. Then you idea would make sense.
@Mags Murphy: Go on the Mags!
Just put a mask on. Kids will have no problem with it only the anti everything parents will object.
@Dave Phelan: really. Nightmares about faceless people. Snots getting stuck in the masks breathing in your own germs all day. Not being able to lip read. Lack of emotional intelligence from not seeing facial expressions. But this isn’t a problem. Because you are kept safe. I’m so happy for you.
@Marcia Craine: in Spain all children from the age of 3 years wear a mask, no problems. Children can carry very high viral loads and can obviously infect other children and adults. There is all the problem of long term COVID in a small number of cases.
@Marcia Craine: “lack of emotional intelligence from not being able to see facial expressions”. I must say this to my kid when he’s going out to play hurling next week. Tell the lads to take their protective headgear off as their being starved of emotional intelligence by not being able to see each others facial expressions. Better to risk a smack of a hurl on the head instead.
@Marcia Craine: Your poor child. Wearing a mask is such a terrible thing to go through. My deepest sympathies. I hope you don’t shelter them too much from the big bad world that we live in…….. Nightmares about faceless people is better than potential nightmares of putting their parent/grand parent in hospital.
@Marcia Craine: my 7 year old granddaughter has worn one for over a year everyday without a problem as have all her classmates here in Spain. No school closures etc
@Marcia Craine: masks have been a huge problem for deaf kids and adults but we still wear them I agree with the snots,dirt and hands with germs I feel sorry for kids they most of all have had it hardest I wish adults would get a bit of common sense and give kids a break,most kids know the drill so did anyone think of asking them how they feel
@Michael Keegan: how do you know there is no lasting problems?
@Marcia Craine: it’s for a few weeks, get a grip Marcia
Get over it. It’s just a mask. Children will be fine with it. It’s the adults that promote the anxiety. This should have happened last year, then maybe we wouldn’t be where we are now.
@2thFairy: how old are your children?
@Janey: he doesn’t have any.
@2thFairy: gas, its all the kids fault. It’s like we’ve gone full circle. Filthy kids are super spreaders, to, oh kids don’t get very sick and don’t transmit it, to, filthy kids, it’s all their fault for not wearing a mask or get the vaccine.
So while nphet and government have cleverly got us to blame the kids, nobody questions the mismanagement of our health service by our health administrators and government.
@Barry Ryan: Mismanagement of the health service is not the point here, the point is, is that kids in the age groups are getting the virus and spreading it.. Its as simple as that really, what people cannot grasp about this fact beggers belief.
@Dave: So what? Kids that age don’t die from it, and don’t get severely ill, any kid I know that has had it, barely noticed. All the vulnerable are vaccinated, in fact, surgeries were cancelled in crumlin because of another respiratory virus (NOT COVID) , which was caused by the ending of restrictions and they all got sick at the same time.
@Barry Ryan: “any kid I know that has had it, barely noticed” So what? I have know adults that have had it and “barely noticed” it does not mean you cannot spread it.. What is the issue you have exactly with kids wearing masks, and is this your issue or your actual kids issue? We are seeing a lot of parents loose the rag over this but it seems more a parent issue than the kids themselves..I am genuinely curious as to what the problem actually is ?
@Barry Ryan: Nobody questioning the mismanagemen?!!! Where have you been hiding, craytur?
total joke kids have to wear masks in schools. Its ok for adults to go to a pub, match etc.
Tony holohan recommended this… The cervical scandal, the pushing of the swineflu vacs and now moves onto the kids… Sure we’ll reward him with the freedom of Dublin, shambles of a country.
@xDemo17: Three spoons of politicians’ mistakes. Two pinches of spicey scary terms. 5 oz of will somebody think of the children. Stir vigorously, pop in the brain of someone “who really thinks”. Turn to gas regulo “inform yourself”. Very important. Only serve half-baked.
Out of curiosity i wonder how many pro mask wearing for children commentators on this article have young children of mask wearing age.
The comment that the guidance went out to schools unsigned and not on the headed paper of the Dept should alarm everyone. Who is taking these decisions and who is accountable for them?
After two years of kite flying and leaks messing with our heads they’re now going to mess with our kids heads, either through ineptitude or just pure badness.
The same people who would usually complain about ‘snowflake’, weak kids winning participation trophies and not learning any harsh life lessons are the ones now freaking out about what wearing a mask might do to kids. If it bothers you that much then get them a clear face shield instead. Plenty of my friends have kids and I know a few of them requested masks because they felt left out and wearing one made them feel like a ‘grown up’. There are plenty of ways to help a child not fear mask wearing.
It could of been so much easier if it was down to choice and left at that. Not the type of vaccine “choice” where we wer all pitched off one another but the type of choice where all kids could attend school, choose to wear a mask or not, and everyone jst get on with it.
@Christine Hanway: that’s way too sensible christine, better we have zealots telling us it’s no big deal and;to mask them all up!!
@Christine Hanway: Choice for what? The mask protects the others from you, not the contrary. It’s the most effective way to slow down the spreading. Genius.
Treacherous ‘rebel’ from the ‘Rebel county’.. How must he feel living in the shadow (where he will ALWAYS be) to Jack Lynch who at least held the office with SOME dignity. Then again, big pharma didn’t hand out ‘donations’ back then to keep the people under control.
Tosspot
Both he and Foley still have a problem giving all students, including many disabled ones, their right to sn education, based on their lack of addressing the lack of autism classes and SNs in Ireland.
Obviously masks will help curb the spread in school, and children will be able to wear them as they are so adaptable and good natured and will want to do their bit to protect their community. Still, I sincerely hope this is a short term measure and that mask wearing for children does not become the norm. A holistic approach is needed, taking into account the risk to children from covid (very low) and developmental issues that may be associated with mask-wearing in the long term. I fear that once masking is on, it is hard to take away again, and it becomes normalised.
Flitting like a Fianna Fail fish… dat’s alliteration baby!! :-)
Possum in brewery comes to mind
HEPA filter units for schools. €30 to €650
… parents would gladly fund raise urgently for these.
No Engineers on NPHET! NPHET missed the importance of masks, antigen tests and now HEPA filters!!! .. It is an aerosol borne virus lads! Medically trained people cant be expected to understand this. They are not qualified.
have your say