As more countries are opening up their borders and international travel resumes, Ireland are fully expecting and hoping that the 14 day quarantine on arrival back to Ireland will be lifted.
According to The Irish Times:
“Restrictions are likely to be eased only for those arriving into Ireland from countries which have brought coronavirus under control, despite a State-appointed taskforce calling for the existing two-week quarantine requirement to be dropped completely”.
Government sources said Ministers were likely to stick with plans for so-called “air bridges” between Ireland and other countries which have brought the virus under control, with the issue potentially being discussed by Cabinet in the coming days.
The State-appointed Taskforce for Aviation Recovery on Tuesday called for the current requirement for those arriving into the State to be quarantined for 14 days to be dropped completely.
An interim report from the group called for the quarantine to be dropped by July 1st, adding: “A 14-day quarantine period makes non-essential and discretionary travel challenging, and inhibits business-related travel, which is critical for the Irish economy.
“The taskforce notes that implementation of efficient test and trace regimes can provide effective alternatives to the current 14-day quarantine measure.”
Despite this, well-placed sources said any easing would apply only to travel from other countries where Covid-19 had been controlled. And Taoiseach Leo Varadkar told RTÉ’s Prime Time on Tuesday night that Ireland needed to be very “careful and cautious” and the country would likely be “paired” with other countries which have tackled the virus.
Mr Varadkar has said the issue would be discussed by a Cabinet committee this week, with other sources suggesting it may also be discussed by the full Cabinet on Thursday, which could be the last such meeting of the Fine Gael-Independent minority administration.