31 August 2021
The Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) has welcomed the plan to end Covid restrictions by 22 October. The organisation has called on government to confirm this date will also apply to mandatory hotel quarantine and vaccine passports. Government had previously indicated both of these measures would be kept longer term.
ICCL Executive Director Liam Herrick said:
“It’s very welcome to see government set a deadline of 22 October to end all restrictions. We hope this will mean the overarching emergency legislation will be allowed to lapse on its 9 November sunset clause. We also hope this means previous government statements – that quarantine and vaccine passports will remain with us for longer – are now null and void.”
ICCL calls on government to commit to ending mandatory quarantine, a form of detention, and the discriminatory use of the vaccine passport, as soon as possible.
Without the overarching emergency legislation, which lapses on 9 November, there will be no legal basis for restrictions on our movement or gatherings. In the meantime, ICCL calls on Government to prioritise a relaxation on the regulations for attendance on funerals, which has a deep impact on families and has been one of the hardest restrictions for those faced with it during the pandemic.
ENDS/
The Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) is Ireland’s oldest independent human rights campaigning organisation. We monitor, educate and campaign to secure human rights for everyone in Ireland.
For comment: Liam Herrick
For media queries: sinead.nolan@iccl.ie