An Irish citizen has tried to circumvent pandemic restrictions, prohibiting him from leaving his country to holiday in The Canary Islands, by having claimed to the Irish authorities that he was in fact an “essential worker” at a hotel on the south of Tenerife. He allegedly decided to present a typed letter to the police at the airport which he claimed was solid confirmation of his necessary role, as an essential worker, providing an essential service, requiring him to travel and, therefore, that he should be let board a flight to these sub-tropical islands.

 

The letter, delivered to the border control police officers, who subsequently shared it on social media, declared the man to be a:  “Provider of electronic security systems, which is an essential service in Europe and is covered by the Irish Government Council of the January 24 ” adding that the letter in question had been issued by the “Human Resources Department of the (hotel company)” and that “the (individual) will provide an essential service in the (hotel) of Tenerife, Spain”.

However, despite the man having clearly spent some time on the document, it raised suspicions among the Garda agents as to whether the man really was an essential worker who in the end not only prevented him from boarding the plane to Tenerife but also imposed a fine of €438 pounds (500 euros) as a penalty for trying to violate Covid-19 mobility restriction measures.

In a tweet, the Irish Garda, in addition to giving an account of the facts, pointed out that “Covid-19 does not switch off so that people can attend parties, go on holidays or gather in large groups.”

Furthermore they added “so far, 375 fines have been issued at Dublin airport to people attempting to leave the country for non-essential travel” and said that “under current Covid-19 restrictions, you must stay home and not travel, including abroad, unless you have a legal reason to do so”.

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