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The blockade at Co Kildare will be lifted with immediate effect.
The cabinet meeting this afternoon made the decision after the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) discussed the matter today.
The additional Covid-19 restriction for Kildare was introduced after an increase in Covid-19 cases, many of which were related to meat processing plants.
They were previously extended and were not due to end until September 6.
Today’s decision means that people in the county face the same restrictions as the rest of the country.
A government statement said: “The National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) met earlier and reviewed the epidemiological situation in Kildare and confirmed that it continues to improve and is now broadly similar to that of the entire country.
“The number of cases attributable to community transmission or possible community transmission in Kildare during the last 14 days has been 36%.
“At the national level, the community transmission rate or possible community transmission is also 36%.”
The statement says there is no longer a justification for a differentiated approach between Kildare and the rest of the country.
He added: “The Government recognizes the very significant impact of the measures on the people, communities and businesses of Kildare over the past three weeks, and recognizes that the improvement in the situation is due to the willingness of all to adhere to the guidelines. of public health and implemented measures “.
The statement said: “While the situation in Kildare has improved, the national situation remains uncertain and the government continues to emphasize the importance of adhering to public health advice and guidelines to stop the spread of the virus.”
Meanwhile, the business community in Co Kildare is breathing a great sigh of relief this afternoon after it was confirmed that the local lockdown in the county will be lifted.
Alan Shine, executive director of the Kildare Chamber of Commerce representing 390 local businesses, said: “The news of the lifting of the closure in Kildare is very welcomed by the business community here who have faced an unprecedented three weeks of economic disaster.”
However, he said the local economy is not out of the woods yet.
“Cash flow remains the number one concern for businesses. The conversation should start now about how we live and work with Covid in the country until a vaccine is found. There is profound relief, especially in the tourism, hospitality sectors. and leisure, where many employees have let themselves go and the hope is now that these companies can start trading immediately and return to some kind of normalcy, “he said.
“Isolated closures of immediately affected areas should be the way to go, as the blunt instrument of county-wide closures is pointless and does not work.”
Meanwhile, business owners are just happy to be back in business.
Paul Lenehan, owner of the Harte bistro in Kildare and the Dew Drop Inn in Naas, said he hopes to get both businesses back online by Thursday once he gives his staff plenty of notice and can restock the coolers.
The lifting of the local closure also means you can finally open your new business, an artisan grocery store, a deli, and a cooking school called Firecastle located next door to Harte’s.
“We are delighted to be able to get back into business and be in balance (with other businesses outside of the county,” he told Independent.ie.
But he said the idea of the local shutdown lasting another week as planned would have been very difficult.
“All companies were facing a very difficult week,” he said, adding that he would have felt compelled to increase the government’s Covid wage subsidy to give staff a decent salary if they were forced to stay closed.
And despite the difficulties the local shutdown had on his businesses and others, he said it was the right thing to do.
“What’s positive about this is the fact that the government can isolate and close counties as needed,” he said.
But he said the scenes of teens and young adults in their 20s drinking and partying on Killarney’s main street on Saturday night were really offensive to people in the county who have had a rough few weeks on top of everything else since the pandemic began. .
“It is extremely frustrating,” he said. “But the narrative (about Covid) has not changed enough to scare them. They are not afraid of anything,” he said.
Meanwhile, Jason Totos, director of golf at the luxurious Carton House Hotel and Golf Course in Kildare, said his phone started ringing for golf reservations even before the good news was officially confirmed.
“It is really encouraging and exciting,” he said.
“It will be wonderful to welcome members and visitors back,” he told Independent.ie.
But he said the last three and a half weeks have been a huge disappointment not only for the club but also for the members and guests who had to cancel.
Even many of the club’s members, who were still allowed to play golf if they lived in the county, couldn’t do so because they live just outside the Kildare border, he said.
As a result, the club was forced to cancel dozens of bookings from both individual members and golf societies, many of whom would normally go abroad for golf excursions but chose to stay on vacation due to travel restrictions on golf. Covid.
“We lost three and a half weeks of business,” he said.
The end of the County Kildare closure was welcomed by local Senator Fianna Fáil Fiona O’Loughlin, who had lobbied the government to terminate it early.
“It has been a very difficult time for local entrepreneurs, especially those in the hospitality industry. This time it has been much more difficult than even the general shutdown at the national level,” said Senator O’Loughlin.
The Newbridge-based senator had contacted Health Minister Stephen Donnelly and the Taoiseach directly several times on the issue. She said this, combined with the reopening of schools, can boost morale in the county.
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