A FERMANAGH and Omagh District Councillor says he now “regrets” travelling to Ibiza on holiday earlier this month, following his subsequent positive Covid-19 test at the holiday's end.

Enniskillen Councillor Paul Blake, SDLP, spent ten days in isolation in Ibiza after receiving a positive coronavirus test as part of a routine PCR test as he prepared to depart the Balearic Island in mid July.

Speaking fresh off the plane at home in Enniskillen on Monday morning, he said: “I regret making the trip – it [the positive test] put a sour note on the end of the holiday.”

When Councillor Blake departed for Ibiza, the country was on the approved Green List for travel.

Ibiza is now on the Amber List, but as he has received two Covid-19 vaccinations, Councillor Blake did not need to isolate when he returned to Enniskillen.

Those who travel to and from Amber List countries who have been fully vaccinated must provide proof of a negative Covid-19 test result taken up to three days before departure, book and pay for a day two Covid-19 PCR test, and complete a UK passenger locator form within 48 hours of departure.

Speaking of his decision to head abroad for a holiday, Councillor Blake said: “It was a bad mistake, in hindsight.

"When you’re double-vaccinated, you say to yourself, 'Sure, it's on the Green List, what harm can it do?',” he added.

Speaking of his shock diagnosis of Covid-19 when completing a routine PCR test, Councillor Blake said: “It was a real shock when we got the news.

"Any [Covid] symptoms I would have had, I wouldn’t have put down to Covid-19 – I wouldn’t have associated them with anything like this, [thinking they were] maybe just general symptoms from being away abroad.

"I got the result on the Wednesday; I had symptoms mirroring a light cold on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Come Monday, the cold had disappeared, and for the rest of the time in isolation I had no Covid symptoms.

“It certainly never crossed my mind [that he had developed Covid-19] as I had been doubly vaccinated, and was just doing the routine test to be able to come home. For it to come back positive was a bit of a shock."

Councillor Blake reflected on the isolation period and how the Spanish island was tackling the virus.

He said: “Over there, they are not tracing it or anything; no-one contacted me the whole week when I was in isolation. I was the one making the phone calls to the embassy, and to a Covid phone line, and I spoke to them twice in the whole 10 days that I was in isolation.”

Councillor Blake had encountered some issues with PCR testing before departure.

He said: “Our airline, Easyjet, when we flew over, wouldn’t accept any of our tests before the flight – they wouldn’t take the NHS tests, so we had to go back to McCausland’s [car parking area at Belfast airport] and do a test with Medcheck, but there was no communication of needing to do that from the airline.

"All that they told us was needed was a negative PCR test, and we had that with our NHS test, but it wasn’t accepted.”

Councillor Blake also hit out at one of the flaws in the testing system, as Fermanagh residents will have to travel to return their tests.

He said: “I have my PCR test signed up through Randox, but the issue is, there is no drop box nearby in Enniskillen, so I will probably have to drive up the country to drop it off.”

When returning from an Amber List country, those who have been fully vaccinated need only to send away a PCR test on day two of their return, while those who are not fully vaccinated would need to provide a day two, day five and day eight test result.

Councillor Blake is urging those who have not yet received their Covid-19 vaccinations to act now.

He said: “I would be saying to anyone who hasn’t got their vaccine to get their jab and to get their follow-up appointment. I think it has made the difference for me; I had very mild Covid symptoms, and I think that is the reason why.

“The vaccine will make a big difference – if you are unlucky enough to catch this thing, you will find the symptoms you have developed are very mild.”