Irish Examiner view: Too early to ease controls

We must remain vigilant when it comes to international travel into Ireland. Photograph: Leah Farrell / RollingNews.ie

The pandemic, among many things, provokes a version of Donald Rumsfeld's philosophy around known knowns, known unknowns, and unknown unknowns. By its very quirkiness, it underlines that there are things we can control, things we can't control, and things we don't even know about that we need to control. 

One of the things we need to control but have not done as tightly as we might have is international travel into Ireland. This may not be a primary source of new infections but that almost 250 incoming flights this year had at least one confirmed case cannot be dismissed. That up to 80% of close contacts on some planes have not been traced can only add to those concerns. Those questions darken as low-wage food businesses brought in workers from countries with higher infection rates than ours.