Need for a clear public information campaign on social bubbling
- Rules need to emphasise the exclusivity of the bubble
There is a need for a clear public information campaign on social bubbling according to Labour Senator, Rebecca Moynihan who was speaking after the Government updated the advice on social bubbles to allow any two people living alone to form a social bubble.
Senator Moynihan said:
“I welcome the fact that Government listened to my proposal and again to my call yesterday to simplify some of the language on the gov.ie website by removing the references to mental health. What is needed now from Government is a clear public information campaign clearly emphasising the regulations surrounding social bubbles.
“The advice from the UK Government website is much clearer than the Irish Government guidelines in relation to who can form a bubble, maintaining the exclusivity of the bubble and what to do if a member of the bubble develops Covid-19 symptoms.
“The gov.ie guidelines do not place enough emphasis on the exclusivity of the bubble. It needs to be made clear that while in a support bubble you can act as if you were one household, but you cannot interact in that manner with anyone else outside of that one social bubble.
“It needs to be clearly outlined in the guidelines that if you form a support bubble that you cannot swap around your social bubble for the duration of Level 5 restrictions. I am concerned about the fact that there is no specific guidance around this on the Government website and that people may misconstrue the concept and think that they can form a support bubble with more than one household.
“My colleagues and I have been inundated with queries in relation to social bubbles and the wording on the Government website is confusing. A clear public information campaign from Government outlining the rules for social bubbles is necessary to give people the confidence and necessary information to form a social bubble within the public health guidelines.