More than 70 abscond from Ireland's mandatory hotel facilities
Over 60 ‘designated states’ are currently on the country’s mandatory hotel quarantine list, with travellers from these countries obliged to pre-book a stay in one of the state’s designated mandatory quarantine facilities for 14 days. Picture: Sam Boal / RollingNews.ie
More than 70 people from red-listed countries have absconded from mandatory hotel quarantine since the system was implemented, it has been revealed.
Of the 75 people who left mandatory quarantine , just 24 returned to their accommodation "voluntarily" after gardaí intervened.
reports more than a dozen people have left their hotel without permission in the last week alone.
Leader of the Social Democrats Catherine Murphy said it defeats “the whole purpose” of mandatory hotel quarantine if people can just walk out of their own accord.
Over 60 ‘designated states’ are currently on the country’s mandatory hotel quarantine list, with travellers from these countries obliged to pre-book a stay in one of the state’s designated mandatory quarantine facilities for 14 days.
The vast majority of states on the red-list are countries in Africa, Asia, and South America. Just two European countries, Russia and Turkey, are currently on the list.
It is a criminal offence for a person to leave mandatory quarantine without authorisation with the offender liable to be fined up to €2,000, be jailed for one month, or both.
Legislation to extend the mandatory hotel quarantine system until at least July 31 was recently passed by the Dáil.
