A call has been made for a national programme to test for the presence of the polio virus in wastewater.

This comes after reports emerged that public health officials in the UK found evidence of community transmission of poliovirus for the first time, following routine testing.

Fianna Fáil TD for Dún Laoghaire, Cormac Devlin posed concerns to Health Minister Stephen Donnelly via a Parliamentary Question.

-- Advertisement --

Deputy Devlin said: "Currently, there is no national wastewater surveillance for enterovirus, including polio virus.

"However, I understand that following the recently introduced national wastewater surveillance for SARS-CoV-2 there are discussions about including enterovirus surveillance (including poliovirus) in the future.

"While the numbers of wild poliovirus detected in London were small, they are rising and international travel is adding to the risk factor.

"I am calling on my colleagues in Government to consider establishing a national testing programme, without delay, which could prove vital in preventing potential future outbreaks."