The Supreme Court has dismissed an appeal by Dublin women Niamh Mulreany and Kirstie McGrath, who challenged their prosecution for allegedly refusing to undergo mandatory hotel quarantine upon returning from Dubai during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Supreme Court examined constitutional issues, including the right to liberty, the legitimacy of emergency measures taken by the government, and the delegation of regulatory powers to the Minister for Health.
The women, who had travelled to Dubai for cosmetic surgery that they ultimately did not undergo, were arrested at Dublin Airport after refusing to pay the estimated €1,800 cost for hotel quarantine, citing financial difficulties and the need to return to their children.
They claimed the charges against them were unconstitutional and argued that the delegation of powers to designate countries for mandatory quarantine was an improper exercise of legislative authority under the Constitution.
Their challenge questioned the delegation of powers to the Minister for Health, which mandated quarantine for travellers from certain countries, claiming that the charges under the 1947 Health Act are unconstitutional.
Ms Justice Aileen Donnelly, delivering the judgment, found that the designation of countries by the Minister for Health fell within legislative power and that the review process by a Designated Appeals Officer did not constitute a judicial function, calling the women’s arguments “wafer-thin.”
