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Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe has said that people should “exercise discretion and restraint” during the Christmas period to minimize further health risks from Covid-19, which in turn “will profoundly influence the look of 2021” .
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Mr. Donohoe said it was “so tremendous” that so many companies were able to reopen today, and seeing so many get back to work was essential.
However, he said it was “equally essential” that when in restaurants, people must respect the livelihoods and health of those who work there to ensure safety.
“We have to exercise discretion; indeed, we have to exercise restraint to ensure that during this period we do not create further health risks for ourselves and those who care for us when eating out, or for you.” “Go out with your family,” Donohoe said.
“That is why it is so important that we try to maintain balance during the Christmas period because, in turn, it will profoundly influence the look of 2021.”
Speaking about the reopening of the hotel sector today, Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe says: “It is so important that we try to keep the balance during the Christmas period.” pic.twitter.com/nP2vFl1OGs
– RTÉ News (@rtenews) December 4, 2020
When asked about the cases where some outlets did not reopen due to security precautions, Mr. Donohoe said that he could not comment on individual businesses, but understood that the decisions some owners were making were “very difficult “.
Donohoe said the Covid Support Restriction Plan payment was “only available to businesses that need to close.”
He said there was an important issue of equity and use of taxpayer money that he needed to know.
The minister said that the CRSS payment allows companies that must close due to public health guidelines receive a weekly payment of up to € 5,000 in revenue, depending on their normal billing.
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Donohoe said there will also be an additional payment for businesses that cannot open due to restrictions in the last two weeks of this month and the first week of January.
He said this is being done because it is still a very difficult period for companies that cannot reopen.
Donohoe said that in general, if a business decides it does not want to reopen, if it still meets certain criteria, it will still be able to access other provisions, such as waiving fees and paying the Wage Subsidy Plan.
The decision on the PUP will be made in 2021 “when we are clear about our vaccination schedule,” says Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe. pic.twitter.com/LpazJg8Hhv
– RTÉ News (@rtenews) December 4, 2020
Last night, Medical Director Dr. Tony Holohan described the progress made during the Level 5 restrictions as fragile and said he was concerned.
There has already been a small deterioration in recent days and the decline in case numbers is no longer expected next week, which was forecast only last weekend.
A new model for the National Public Health Emergency Team suggests that if people let their guard down for Christmas, the number of cases could reach 1,200 a day by mid-January.
But Dr. Holohan said this is not a prognosis nor is it inevitable.
He said it is within our own ability to be individually responsible for social contacts and to keep the virus under control for the next few weeks.
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