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A DUP MINISTER has said that he never made any attempt to “attribute the spread of Covid-19” to religion, following controversial comments about the difference between the spread of the virus in nationalist and unionist areas.
Last week, Stormont agriculture minister Edwin Poots claimed that the virus was more widespread in nationalist areas than in unionist areas by a factor of six to one.
Poots suggested that the coronavirus had risen among nationalists at a higher rate because behaviors had been influenced by the “poor political leadership” displayed by Sinn Fein leaders when they attended the June funeral of IRA veteran Bobby Storey in Belfast in apparent violation of the Stormont rules on mass gatherings.
His claim has been rejected by the Northern Minister of Health and Medical Director.
Dr Michael McBride, Northern Ireland Marketing Director, said yesterday: “Certainly, at no time would we have publicly or privately suggested that there is a link between Covid-19 transmission rates and the political affiliation or religion of women. people.
“There is no such evidence, we do not have that evidence and our approach throughout all of this has been guided by the evidence.”
He added: “I am not aware of such evidence and I am not sure of the basis for those comments.”
In a statement today, Poots accused Sinn Fein of trying to “distort and misrepresent” the comments it made about the spread of Covid-19 in nationalistic areas, insisting that it never linked the issue to religion.
Poots said: “Over the course of the past few days, Sinn Fein and others have tried to distort and distort the comments I made in reference to the spread of Covid-19.
“At no time did I attribute the spread of Covid-19 to religion. It is deeply regrettable that such a narrative was created. It is obvious that this spread is related to behavior problems, no more, no less.
“I appreciate my Catholic friends and neighbors. He would never intentionally use words that might offend them.
“Covid-19 is transmitted by bad behavior as exemplified at Bobby Storey’s funeral.”
Covid-19 in Northern Ireland
The effects of the new restrictions introduced in the six counties aimed at limiting the spread of the coronavirus are not believed to be seen until next week, but there are already “positive signs” that the spread may be starting to slow down.
Schools are currently closed in the north until early November, while bars and restaurants are also closed.
There was more controversy last night for the Stormont executive after it emerged that ministers were informed that closing a variety of businesses would have a low impact on infection rates.
The assessment of the closure of hairdressers and beauticians is contained in a scientific article that guided the recent decisions of the Executive on the implementation of a four-week circuit break for the region.
It was published last night as part of an initiative by the Department of Health to increase transparency around the decision-making process.
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The document listed a range of actions available to ministers, establishing the impact of each on both transmission rates and society in general.
The impact was quantified in terms of the potential reduction in the crucial reproduction number (R number), which is the average number of people that an infected person infects.
Ministers are working hard to reduce the R number to less than one.
Last week, close-contact services, such as hairdressers and beauticians, were among a variety of businesses that were due to close for four weeks.
The executive newspaper said the move would have a low impact on Covid-19 transmission, with a potential reduction in the R number by 0.05.
However, the newspaper said the closures would have a high social and economic impact, warning that they would disproportionately affect low-income workers and women.
Other measures that would have had a greater projected impact on the R number, such as the closure of churches (estimated reduction of R by 0.1), were not taken by the Executive.
The newspaper said the current closure of bars, pubs, cafes and restaurants will likely have a “moderate impact”, reducing R by 0.1-0.2.
With PA reports
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