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Northern Ireland Health Minister Robin Swann isolates himself after coming into contact with someone with Covid-19.
The Northern Health Department said Swann received an exposure notification Wednesday night from the proximity app StopCovid NI, informing him that he had contacted another user who had tested positive.
A statement from the department said that he will fulfill his ministerial responsibilities from home for 14 days.
Previously, DUP agriculture minister Edwin Poots had no intention of offending his Catholic friends and neighbors when he commented that Covid-19 rates were much higher in nationalist than unionist areas, he said Wednesday.
In recent days, Poots has been under pressure to apologize for his comments that there is greater transmission of the virus, at a rate of six to one, in nationalist areas than in unionist ones.
Sinn Féin accused him of seeking to “sectarian” the coronavirus crisis, while the North’s chief medical officer, Dr. Michael McBride, said there was no evidence of a link between infection rates and political or religious identity.
In his original remarks, Poots said that “a lot of the trouble started” after Republican leader Bobby Storey’s funeral in West Belfast in June.
“The people of that community saw the breaking of the rules. So there is a difference between the nationalist and unionist areas, and the difference is around six to one, ”Mr. Poots said.
On Wednesday afternoon, amid continuing controversy over these comments, Mr. Poots issued a statement offering clarification but not an apology.
He said that in recent days “Sinn Féin and others have tried to distort and misrepresent” the comments he made.
“At no time did I attribute the spread of Covid-19 to religion. It is deeply regrettable that such a narrative was created, ”he said.
“It is obvious that such a spread is related to behavior problems, no more, no less. I appreciate my Catholic friends and neighbors. I would never intentionally use words that might offend them. ”
“Covid-19 is transmitted by bad behavior such as that exemplified at Bobby Storey’s funeral,” said Mr. Poots.
Its leader and Prime Minister, Arlene Foster, said it was right for Mr. Poots to clarify his comments.
“As far as I’m concerned, that’s the end of the matter,” he said.
“Of course, the virus does not discriminate against people because of their religion, their politics or where they live.”
The Health Department in its daily newsletter on Wednesday afternoon reported 1,039 new cases of coronavirus, bringing the total to 29,992. There were five more deaths, bringing the total to 629.
There are currently 289 patients treated for Covid in Northern Ireland hospitals, 32 in intensive care units and 26 on ventilators.
The incidence of the virus in the worst affected area of Northern Ireland, Derry and Strabane, continues to decline. During the past seven days, the area experienced 670 cases per 100,000 residents. The figure was 992 cases a week ago.
The seven-day figure for Belfast, the next highest area, is 510 per 100,000, while the average in the north is 361 per 100,000.
Meanwhile, Northern Health Minister Robin Swann said “extremely difficult decisions” had to be made when introducing restrictions.
He was responding to a dispute over an official scientific article that estimated that closing hair and beauty salons could only reduce the virus’s R or reproduction number by 0.05. He also estimated that the closure of pubs and restaurants could decrease it by between 0.1 and 0.2.
Health officials said the four-week period of restrictions imposed last week is designed to reduce the R number below one to see a decrease in the incidence of the virus. It is now estimated to be around 1.4.
This prompted former DUP Minister and Executive Director of the Belfast Chamber of Commerce Simon Hamilton to tweet: “Why did ministers shut down hospitality and close contact with retail when they knew it would have such a low impact on the R number, a high impact (on) income? and a disproportionate effect on the poor and women? ”
Swann and Northern Scientific Director Professor Ian Young defended the decision. “An alternative to the Executive’s specific and time-limited approach to restrictions would be to return to the total lockdown. I don’t think any of us want that, ”said the minister.
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