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WQ.93/2021
WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES BY DEPUTY M.R. LE HEGARAT OF ST. HELIER
QUESTION SUBMITTED ON MONDAY 8th MARCH 2021
ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON MONDAY 15th MARCH 2021
Question
Will the Chief Minister advise whether some people have been exempted from the need to isolate when arriving in the Island and, if so, provide details regarding-
- how many have been exempted;
- who was responsible for deciding exemptions to isolation requirements;
- on what criteria any such decisions have been based; and
- how many cases of Covid-19 have been identified in people who were exempt from isolation?
Answer
- For clarification, individuals granted an exemption are only granted the exemption for a specified reason. They are not granted exemption from general requirements to self-isolate.
At all other times, this exemption does not apply and the person must self-isolate as required by self-isolation guidance. For example, the exemption allows only for the individual to travel to work, attend work and return directly home.
The Contact Tracing, Monitoring and Enforcement Team took on the role of administering the processing of requests for exemptions for workers to attend their premises of work on 26/10/2020. Since that time (correct to 8 March 2021), it has issued:
• For critical work – 711 exemptions for 1,297 workers (some of whom are returning workers)
• For compassionate reasons – 74
• For medical reasons – 43
- The Contact Tracing, Monitoring and Enforcement team makes the decision as to whether someone is exempt for the purposes of travelling to and attending work. If the exemption is requested for compassionate or medical reasons, the decision is made in conjunction with medical professionals.
The Contact Tracing, Monitoring and Enforcement team, in partnership with colleagues from Jersey Customs & Immigration Service and States of Jersey Police, undertakes checks to confirm the individual is in self-isolation outside of the exemption allowance. In partnership with the Health and Safety Inspectorate, the Contact Tracing, Monitoring and Enforcement team undertakes visits to workplaces to ensure that separation and other measures are sufficient and as described in the application.
- Applications are made via an online portal.
The reasons why exemptions are granted are the following:
The person is travelling to Jersey for the purpose of completing critical work
The worker's presence is critical to keep the island or a business running
The worker's skills are not available in Jersey
It would be impossible, unreasonable or dangerous for the worker to complete the isolation period before attending their workplace.
The application must include details of how the worker will self-isolate outside of work and what provisions are in place to support this, how they will get to and from work without using public transport / shared lifts, what measures are in place to ensure they isolate away from Jersey residents when in the workplace and how they remain Covid-secure when interacting with other colleagues.
Critical workers are required to submit a negative PCR test taken within 72 hours of their travel into Jersey. They are required to take a test on arrival and must isolate until the result of that test (unless in very exceptional circumstances).
Medical and compassionate requests are sent directly to the Contact Tracing, Monitoring and Enforcement team via a dedicated email address.
- Fewer than 5 individuals who were provided with exemption from some element of their isolation period have tested positive for Covid-19.