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A major dispute has erupted within the government over the Health Department’s plans to extend mandatory hotel quarantine to an additional 43 countries, including the United States, France and Germany.
The attorney general wrote to Health Minister Stephen Donnelly, expressing concern about the plans that have left other ministers and the European Union “furious”, high-level sources confirmed.
A source with knowledge of the Attorney General’s letter said it was “very clear” in expressing concern that health officials had not followed the correct process or adhered to the legislation the Oireachtas passed on quarantine when formulating their tip.
There is concern in the government that the recommendation to add the countries has “exceeded the scope” and has “misinterpreted the law we passed,” and that European treaty rights and human rights have not been fully considered.
It is understood that there is considerable outrage in the Department of Foreign Relations over the proposal.
The recommendation has raised a number of questions including whether or not there is enough space in existing hotels, what would be done to citizens who are ‘stranded’ and unable to afford quarantine, and what would happen to essential workers.
There are also concerns that the EU has not been fully consulted and that the plans may represent a “major violation” of the rights of European citizens to travel freely. There are more fears about an impact on the Common Travel Zone, as the Isle of Man has been proposed to be included in the list of high-risk countries.
Government sources say they believe health officials were advancing the plans without asking for advice or feedback before making the recommendation.
However, sources in the Department of Health have rejected this idea and have said that the consultation period is happening now, as it would normally be the case after the recommendations are made.
While it has been speculated that Donnelly could approve the plans without the full agreement of his cabinet colleagues, this would be considered a “great political risk.”
Some in the government believe that if it did, the new arrangements could be overturned in court.
Health Department sources maintain that officials were fully aware of the law and that there is a provision in the legislation to add countries for reasons other than those for variants.
Vaccination program
Meanwhile, the Government is coming under increasing pressure following its decision to change the national vaccination program to an age-based system rather than one also focused on profession.
Tánaiste Leo Varadkar was forced last night to defend the change after Fine Gael TD John Paul Phelan said that the government had “dropped the list” of people who expected to be vaccinated earlier, such as teachers and Gardaí. While Mr. Varadkar said that the list of workers and professions had never been fully defined, he also said that there should have been more consultation with unions and stakeholders.
Education Minister Norma Foley told parliamentary Fianna Fáil party that the reasons for changing the priority list for vaccines should be explained.
Apart from the teachers, the Gardaí are also deeply unhappy with the changes.
The Garda Representatives Association leadership will consider the issue at a meeting Thursday.
Separately, The Irish Times learned that the strategy changes were discussed last week by a powerful group of officials. The general secretaries of the Justice, Education and Children departments, whose ministers expressed concern about the measure in the Cabinet, have all attended recent meetings of the group of senior officials.
High-level coalition sources said the changes were discussed in the Cabinet subcommittee Monday night, but only briefly.
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