Coronavirus: Five-step plan to get Northern Ireland out of lockdown revealed | UK News



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Northern Ireland’s delegated government has released a five-step plan to gradually pull out of the blockade as science allows.

Unlike the plans announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his Irish counterpart Leo Varadkar, the one from Stormont It is not time specific.

Although it will be reviewed every three weeks, the power-sharing coalition in Belfast agreed that its plan would be led by science, not by an “arbitrary time frame.”

His message remains ‘Stay home, save lives’.

The implementation of each phase will be dictated by medical and scientific advice, the capacity of the NHS, and the impact on broader public health.

In the first step, groups of four to six people who do not share a home will be allowed to meet outdoors while maintaining social distance.

Outdoor spaces and public sports services will also be included in the first step, such as walking, running, biking, some water activities, golf and tennis.

People who cannot work from home will be encouraged to go to work in stages if the COVID-19 spreading rate R continues to drop below one.

R is a measure of how many people, on average, will become infected for each person with the disease.

If the R is one, then a person with the disease infects another person.

As long as the R value is below one, the number of daily cases will continue to decrease.

Large overseas-based retailers, such as garden centers, will be able to reopen in the first step, as well as movie theaters by car.

Direct access church services will be available and churches will open for private prayer at an early stage.

Step five will include large indoor gatherings, nightclubs, concerts, physical contact sports, restaurants, cafes, pubs, and education for the early years.

Prime Minister Arlene Foster said: “We recognize how difficult the current restrictions are. But those restrictions, and the determined people in Northern Ireland who have adhered to them, have saved lives and continue to do so.”

“We do not want to maintain any restrictions for longer than necessary, but in relaxing any measure we must be aware of the possible effects on virus transmission and our ability to save lives.”

“The executive’s recovery strategy establishes a way for us to get out of the running of the bulls as safely as possible.”

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