Joint Committee on Transport and Communications to discuss Covid testing for international travel into and out of Ireland

The meeting at 1.30pm in Committee Room 2 of Leinster House will hear from officials from the Departments of Transport, Health, Foreign Affairs and Justice:

• Fintan Towey, Assistant Secretary, Civil Aviation, Department of Transport;
• Phil O’Flaherty, Principal Officer, Aviation Safety and Security Division, Department of Transport;
• Muiris O’Connor, Assistant Secretary, Department of Health;
• Deirdre Ní Fhallúin, Director of the Consular Directorate, with responsibility for International Travel, Department of Foreign Affairs;
• Oonagh Buckley, Deputy Secretary of the Department of Justice; and
• Eileen Leahy, Principal Officer, Department of Justice.

“We find ourselves in the challenging situation that travel restrictions have been re-introduced in a response to the emergence last month of the new Covid-19 variant, Omicron. The Committee would like to hear a comprehensive briefing from officials on how these latest restrictions on travel into Ireland and from here to other EU countries and beyond will work.”

“Christmas is a time of the year where people return to Ireland to spend time with families and friends. The Committee is looking to ensure that this briefing will show how these latest restrictions on travel into Ireland will operate and ensure the public are fully aware of the requirements and that it functions in a passenger friendly manner.”

The Joint Committee on Transport and Communications has 14 Members, nine from the Dáil and five from the Seanad.

The meeting in Committee Room 2 can be viewed live on Oireachtas TV.

Committee proceedings can also be viewed on the Houses of the Oireachtas Smartphone App, available for Apple and Android devices.