Lawmakers in Northern Ireland are weighing up new rules that campaigners say could allow mandatory vaccination and lockdowns in the event of another pandemic.
But experts say the narrative on proposed updates to public health law have been “hijacked” by campaigners.
The country is holding a public consultation in advance of a bill that experts say would bring its public health laws in line with the rest of the U.K.
It’s a wide-ranging document that, at 79 pages, proposes numerous changes to Northern Ireland’s Public Health Act 1967.
Based on a 2016 review into the law, sections describing “special requirements” for vaccination and limits on group meetings have caused controversy.
Campaign groups have reacted strongly to these sections, arguing they could be used to introduce mandatory vaccination and lockdowns, according to the BBC.
But experts have urged calm amid a campaign that’s seen local lawmakers sent numerous letters and emails opposing the recommendations of the consultation.
“It is about having various protections in for the public,” British Medical Association NI chair Alan Stout told the U.K.’s national broadcaster.
“It is very broad reaching and it should not and cannot be looked at simply through the lens of Covid or actually vaccination itself.”
With a new bill itself yet to be written, the consultation document is many steps from becoming law.
A draft bill will be written to reflect feedback from the consultation, which will then make its way through Northern Ireland’s parliament before it is introduced.
It’s too early to say how many recommendations will ultimately make it into law.
Section 143 of the consultation suggests new regulations “may impose a special restriction or requirement such as requiring a person to be vaccinated or to receive other prophylactic treatments.”
England temporarily mandated COVID-19 vaccination for healthcare staff back in 2021. The rules were then as the pandemic waned in 2022.
Northern Ireland didn’t bring in these rules for its own health staff — but the proposals may enable it to do so in future.
Northern Ireland health minister Mark Nesbitt has argued “it is important we consider all options,” despite his own aversion to mandatory vaccination, which is a contentious issue among public health professionals.
The practice can stoke public opinion against the shots, introducing controversy and ultimately discouraging uptake.
Nonetheless, they have been effective under certain circumstances, as World Health Organization European Director Hans Kluge said back in 2021.
Kluge argued mandates should only be introduced as a “last resort…when all other feasible options to improve vaccination uptake have been exhausted.”
Dr Stout said Northern Ireland’s consultation wasn’t really about mandates at all.
It “appears to have got hijacked with it being about vaccination, and it really isn’t about vaccination,” he told the BBC.
“We certainly don’t support mandatory vaccination,” he added.
The consultation also covers requirements to keep sick kids out of school, restrictions on group meetings and other measures used widely during the pandemic.
Campaigners have argued sections of the document could result in forced quarantine detainment.
Dr Stout said: “It’s about a repertoire of potential actions in a catastrophic public health emergency that can be accessed by whatever government is in charge to protect the population.”
A health department spokesperson told the BBC: “Northern Ireland needs to replace outdated public health legislation that is more than 55 years old. We need legislation that covers infection and contamination from biological, chemical and radiological sources and brings us into line with the rest of the UK.”
“A public consultation is supposed to stimulate public debate,” they added.
The consultation ends Monday October 14.
