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THE STORMONT EXECUTIVE will meet today after yesterday again failing to agree new coronavirus restrictions for Northern Ireland as the clock ticks towards the expiration of the current disruption.
A third executive meeting in three days broke down last night with no consensus emerging.
Ministers will resume discussions today, less than 24 hours before regulations expire, and many companies don’t know if they will be able to open tomorrow.
On another day of twists and turns within the five-party coalition, the Palestinian Authority news agency understands that:
- The DUP vetoed a second proposal from Health Minister Robin Swann to extend the circuit interruption measures, this time by a week.
- Stormont’s other parties rejected alternative proposals put forward by DUP Finance Minister Diane Dodds, which would have seen a partial reopening of the hotel sector.
- Alliance Justice Minister Naomi Long introduced a hybrid proposal that merged Swann’s one-week extension with Dodds measures that were introduced the following week.
Long’s proposal has yet to be voted on and it is understood that they will form the basis of discussions renewed this morning.
Before yesterday’s meeting, Dodds released data suggesting that the four-week outage had resulted in a 400 million pound loss to the local economy.
Eight new Covid-19-related deaths were announced in Northern Ireland yesterday, with 791 new cases of the virus.
The BBC also reported yesterday that three members of a family in the north have died with Covid-19 in the past two weeks.
They include a man in his 50s who worked for the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust, it reported.
Divided
The divisions at the head of the power-sharing administration have been exposed in recent days as ministers struggle to agree on new response measures to the pandemic.
The DUP had already vetoed a proposal by Swann to extend the current hiatus by two weeks on Tuesday night, despite the other four executive parties backing the measure.
Yesterday, Swann suggested a one-week extension as a way to buy some time and avoid the cliff edge of current regulations that expire at midnight tonight.
The unionist Ulster minister said it would provide space for ministers to try to develop an agreed approach for the following week.
However, the DUP again vetoed the proposal using a voting mechanism that requires any proposal to gain the backing of a majority of nationalist executive members and a unionist majority.
Northern Ireland Minister of Health Robin Swann
Source: Liam McBurney via PA Images
It has left the DUP in the unusual position of using cross-community provisions against proposals put forward by a fellow trade unionist.
The DUP and Sinn Féin, who jointly lead the administration, disagree on the Covid-19 response.
The DUP has accused Sinn Féin of backtracking on an apparent promise to support the partial reopening of hospitality, such as cafes and restaurants.
DUP sources believe that Sinn Féin’s power base in Dublin intervened and forced a change of direction north of the border.
DUP Prime Minister Arlene Foster said her partners in government had to explain why they had changed positions.
Foster pointed to a media interview Sunday in which Sinn Féin Deputy Prime Minister Michelle O’Neill said the executive is looking for ways to open businesses.
“She (O’Neill) advocated for a wide range of relaxes, said she was proposing it to the executive and I think it’s a Sinn Fein question to know why they’re in a situation now, even though there has been no change in medical advice, none at all, as to why they are now in a completely different scenario, ”he told the BBC.
The claims have been vigorously rejected by Sinn Féin, and the party insisted it was acting in accordance with medical and scientific advice.
O’Neill said evidence from the medical director, Dr. Michael McBride, indicated that any relaxation of current restrictions would cause excess deaths.
“The advice was tough and clear: if we don’t keep the restrictions in place for another two weeks, more people will die,” he said.
“My priority has been saving lives, protecting livelihoods and ensuring that our health service is not overwhelmed by the spread of the virus.”
PA understands that a document that Swann presented to the executive warned ministers that if the interruption was not extended for two weeks it would “significantly increase” the probability of an intervention before Christmas in Northern Ireland.
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The document made clear that even a two-week extension may not be long enough to avoid the need to impose new measures before the holiday period.
It warned that all hospitals in Northern Ireland are currently operating “at, near or above full capacity” and that non-Covid services could be “negatively affected” if staff are overwhelmed, leading to a increase in deaths from other causes.
In the document, Swann also expressed doubts about whether the alternative proposals put forward by Dodds could have been translated into regulations in time for the expiration of the current cut.
PA understands that these measures include:
- Close contact services, including hairdressing, beauty treatments, and driving classes, resuming November 13 by appointment only.
- Unlicensed venues, including cafes and coffee shops, will reopen on November 13.
- Hotels capable of serving food and alcohol to residents.
- The licensed premises will remain closed until November 27. A “safe open group” will be established, involving the hotel industry and executives, to oversee this move.
- Pubs and bars in conditions to offer closed sale from November 13.
Those deadlines have been pushed back a week in Long’s revised proposals.
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