While no one should be making unnecessary journeys at the present time, the realities of life along the border is that some people may need to cross it several times a day.
That’s the message from Sinn Fein MLA Jemma Dolan who says she is hoping the gardai will use their discretion in imposing new penalties on those crossing from the North without a reasonable excuse.
Anyone crossing the border from the North into the Republic without such an excuse will be hit with a 100 euro fine from today.
And it applies to every adult in a vehicle, not just the driver.
Jemma Dolan says the message is the same on both sides of the border.
Damien McGinnity, from Border Communities Against Brexit group, says the new fines are needed because of the lack of cross-border co-operation on the island as a whole in relation to the pandemic.
