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The government publishes the ‘road map’ of the reopening phases of the coronavirus
The Government has released its coronavirus reopening “road map” for Ireland this afternoon.
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar described five “phases” of reopening the country, if all goes well and Covid-19 does not retain control of our lives.
While there will be two more weeks of “tight restrictions” from May 5 to 18 to “further weaken the virus” to keep it from coming back, the 2 km limit on the exercise will be extended on May 5 to 5 km for everyone, including cocoons, which can come out if kept away from other people.
The country will reopen “slowly and gradually” from May 18.
The plan sets out five stages to unlock restrictions, at three-week intervals.
As we ease the restrictions, the National Public Health Emergency Team and the Government will constantly monitor the rate of the virus in the community.
Starting May 18, it looks like this:
Phase 1 (May 18)
- Allow outdoor meetings between people from different homes.
- Open childcare for healthcare workers
- Staged return of outdoor workers
- Open retailers that are primarily outdoor or those that were open during the first level of restriction (eg, opticians)
- Opening of certain public services outdoors.
Phase 2 (June 8)
- Allow home visits
- Develop plans and supports to open businesses taking into account the safety of staff and customers.
- Open small points of sale and shopping malls where social distancing can be observed.
- Open public libraries
Phase 3 (June 29)
- Allow small social gatherings
- Opening day-care centers, nurseries and preschools for essential worker children gradually
- Return to work for those with low levels of interaction
- Open non-essential points of sale with entry and exit at street level
- Open courtyards
Phase 4 (July 20)
- The opening of nurseries, kindergartens and preschools for the children of all other workers gradually
- Returning to work for those who cannot work from home
- Gradual relief of restrictions for higher risk services (eg hairdressers)
- Opening of museums, galleries, places of worship.
Phase 5 (August 10)
- Allow larger social gatherings
- Return to work in all sectors.
- In phases, from the beginning of the academic year 2020/2021, opening of primary and secondary schools and institutions of 3 levels.
- Further relaxation of restrictions on high-risk retail services.
The Government will monitor the following during the phases, in case we need to go back to an earlier phase and keep the virus under control:
- The latest data on the progression of the disease.
- The capacity of the health service.
- The ability of the test and trace system.
- The measures established to protect vulnerable groups.
- An evaluation of the impact of excess morbidity and mortality as a consequence of restrictions.
The Government added in a statement: “The Covid 19 emergency has had an unprecedented impact on our economy, as well as on our society.
“As we begin the gradual reopening of our economy, companies will need additional support. Many companies will not be able to simply pick up where they left off.
“The Government will meet again tomorrow (Saturday) to agree on a new package of measures to help our companies restart, reconnect, and rehire staff who have been fired or suspended.
Separately, the Government, employers, and unions are developing a National Protocol to protect the health and safety of workers, with the assistance of the Health and Safety Authority and HSE.
“The risk of a second wave of the virus is always present.
“As a country, we can only go from one phase to the next if the virus remains under control between each phase.
“There will be a long-term need for physical distance, good hand hygiene, respiratory hygiene, regular cleaning, and for people to stay home and isolate themselves if they are sick.
However, the Government is very aware that there are important consequences of social distancing measures.
“The normal structures of daily life (work, school, sport, entertainment) have temporarily ceased to exist and even as we reopen society, we will live our daily lives in a modified way as long as we live with this pandemic.
“We recognize that as we seek to mitigate the risks of Covid-19 transmission through social distancing restrictions, we are creating other challenges for individuals, families, and communities.
“Some of these challenges are manageable in the very short term, but as the restrictions continue, the impact becomes greater for some groups.
“By living with restrictions, the Government will take into account these balancing impacts and the particular consequences for the most vulnerable groups in our society. Areas where social distancing is of greatest concern include:
- Non-greedy health delays
- Mental health and wellness
- Vulnerable groups for whom the home is not a safe place
- Minorities and other groups disproportionately affected by restrictions
- Offensive and risky behavior
- Crime and surveillance and access to justice
“Government departments and agencies have been working to modify labor practices, delivery modes to meet these challenges, and this work will have to continue.
“It is recognized that additional steps must be taken to reach the most vulnerable groups and those who are particularly affected by the cocoon orientation and social distancing. Some of these measures are already underway, through various intergovernmental efforts such as the Community call, in this together and Still here initiatives and campaigns.
“The Roadmap also recognizes the need to continue to work intensively on our approach to travel restrictions and controls at ports and airports and our cooperation with Northern Ireland, the United Kingdom and our EU partners.”
You can access the roadmap here: www.gov.ie/roadmap
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