[ad_1]
Stephen Donnelly does not have coronavirus, according to the results of a test for Covid-19 that the Minister of Health gave him on Tuesday.
His cabinet colleagues are no longer obliged to restrict his movements, a government spokeswoman confirmed Tuesday night.
It was learned before that all members of the cabinet were restricting their movements after Donnelly said he was feeling unwell for the afternoon.
A spokeswoman said the minister had contacted his GP and was referred for a Covid-19 test. The result was made public after 9:00 p.m.
The Minister of State for Health, Frank Feighan, confirmed in the Dáil that “Minister Donnelly does not have Covid-19 and I wish him well.”
The Health Department had also confirmed that Dr. Ronan Glynn, acting chief medical officer, was restricting his movements because he met with ministers Monday for a briefing on the latest developments in the coronavirus.
Donnelly had attended the plenary cabinet meeting on Tuesday morning and had also appeared and addressed the press conference in which the government outlined its new Covid-19 plan.
All other members of the cabinet, including Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Tánaiste Leo Varadkar, had been told to restrict their movements as a result and as a precautionary measure.
However, the move was news to at least some members of the cabinet. Justice Minister Helen McEntee was told while being interviewed on RTÉ radio, while another cabinet minister said the development was “a first for me.”
Transportation Minister Eamon Ryan was already isolated at home after a member of his household began to feel ill.
Minister of State for European Affairs Thomas Byrne has also isolated himself since Monday, as he awaits the result of a Covid-19 test after waking up with a “very mild cough,” he said.
After five in the afternoon, Ceann Comhairle Seán Ó Fearghaíl told Dáil that he had received “very serious information”.
Ó Fearghaíl said: “I have been told that in the wake of today’s events, the Cabinet must isolate itself.
“Therefore, the possibility of going ahead with matters does not arise and the House rises, I suspect until next Tuesday or until the Taoiseach tells me to reconvene the House.”
However, it was later announced that the Dáil would meet again on Tuesday evening, without the presence of senior ministers and without the ministers of state responding to questions from the opposition.
But Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue took his first Question Time since his appointment to the post. He was the first cabinet member to attend the House after Donnelly was confirmed to have tested negative.
Earlier, Labor leader Alan Kelly said he had called Martin to challenge Ó Fearghaíl’s announced postponement.
The Taoiseach said that a communication had now been sent to all the ministers to restrict their movements. He said that he had contacted Ceann Comhairle’s office to say that he believed that the ministers of state could represent the government in certain matters and that the Dáil could meet again.
“We had to be cautious,” Six One News told RTÉ. “There were a large number of meetings yesterday that Stephen Donnelly attended regarding this plan to deal with Covid-19, both the Covid-19 cabinet committee itself that went on for several hours and then last night reported to everything. the Cabinet. “Meanwhile, Martin said he could resume his activities on a restricted basis, using Zoom meetings and over the phone.” I’ll be at my desk at work, yes, “he said.
Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald wished Donnelly the best, but said there was a “stark contrast between this reaction in which the entire cabinet has to isolate itself or limit its movements, in the face of scenarios in which workers they tested positive in meat plants, for example. There has to be consistency in terms of how we respond. “
“I think it is a bad turn of events that government business is now suspended.
“We have to avoid, if possible, completely shutting down government business.”
Previously, Kelly claimed there was an “inherent contradiction” in the government’s new five-tier coronavirus plan launched on Tuesday, which he described as “Orwellian.”
The plan includes a scale of restrictions from Level 1 to Level 5, with Level 5 being the most severe.
The whole country is at Level 2, although Dublin has a number of additional conditions due to the large number of coronavirus cases in the capital.
Speaking at the Dáil, Kelly said that now there is a situation “where we have Dublin at two and a little bit, they’re getting a yellow card.”
“If they behave in a short space of time,” they can go back to the same level as everyone else, he added.
But during the irritating exchanges, Martin insisted that the new roadmap was clear. The plan imposes additional restrictions in Dublin on home visits, indoor gatherings and home visits, while so-called “wet bars”, which do not serve food, will remain closed in the capital.
“There is no 2.5. It just doesn’t exist, ”Martin said, adding that the only deviation from the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) advice was in“ wet ”pubs and allowing 5,000 spectators at outdoor events.
He said the government received no advice from NPHET to move Dublin to Level Three. The ministers accepted his advice “regarding Dublin today” and NPHET would meet again on Thursday and “could give other advice.”
During questions from leaders after the launch of the roadmap, Ms McDonald accused the Taoiseach and his government of “failing in their responsibilities” because, she said, a Covid-19 testing and tracking system had not been implemented. suitable months after it had been promised. .
She accused Mr. Martin of “making it up on the fly” and said that months after the government pledged to do 100,000 tests per week, this was still not in place, and was “critical” to dealing with Covid-19. .
Ms. McDonald said the plan was not worth the paper it was written on until full testing and tracing was done. She said that “out of 59 pages, one of them deals with testing and tracing,” arguing that it was the “most central part.”
She said “either you do the testing and tracking right and you do it quickly or we will be consigned to a yo-yo effect of more restrictions and even closures.”
When the opposition TDs intervened while speaking, Mr. Martin told Sinn Féin banks to “stop disrupting” and accused Ms. McDonald of being partisan.
Social Democratic leader Róisín Shortall said anyone seeking clarity on the five risk levels on the roadmap would be “bitterly disappointed” as it accused the government of effectively ignoring international travel and putting it on the long finger until mid-October. .
He also asked what the specific criteria were for counties to move from one level to another. Ms Shortall said that, on the first day of the announcement, the government “starts talking about a level of two and a little.”
The Taoiseach said it agreed “100 percent” on the centrality of evidence tracing and insisted it was in the plan.
He said: “It is not enough to attack people for being pitiful and trying to belittle the very strong measures that have been taken” by including serial testing in nursing homes and meat plants.
Kelly asked the government to clarify whether Dublin was at level two or level three of the six-month plan, saying it was a “glaring omission” that the document was not “tested for seniors” or tested to avoid discriminating against people. with disabilities or vulnerable people.
He and Ms. Shortall asked the Taoiseach to clarify where the NPHET government deviated on their advice and Mr. Martin said the only difference was in relation to wet bars and attendance at outdoor events, including sports arenas. .
[ad_2]