Quarantine for travelers may become compulsory in Ireland – PM Varadkar

Ireland may introduce a legally enforceable 14-day quarantine for people arriving in the country, Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said on Wednesday. The move could replace the current system, under which a 14-day isolation period is merely advised.

“We may need to tighten it up a bit, because at the moment it is advisory, it is not enforceable by the law. We may have to do that,” Varadkar told Today FM radio. The PM spoke days after the United Kingdom announced plans for a quarantine.

Restrictions on entering Ireland, which is part of a Common Travel Area with the UK but not a member of the European Union’s Schengen free travel area, would need to be in place “at least until we have some kind of international agreement” on air travel, Reuters quoted Varadkar as saying.