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The Taoiseach will meet privately with the two top health officials in the state ahead of a crucial meeting of coalition leaders on Covid-19 restrictions today.
Micheál Martin will consult with the Medical Director, Dr. Tony Holohan, and the Deputy Medical Director, Dr. Ronan Glynn, before the larger meeting of political leaders, scheduled for around 3pm.
Dr Holohan and Professor Philip Nolan, Chairman of the Irish Epidemiological Modeling Group, will also make a presentation on their concerns about the rapid growth of Covid-19 to political leaders ahead of this afternoon’s meeting, in which the Taoiseach, Tánaiste Leo. Varadkar, Green Party leader Eamon Ryan, Health Minister Stephen Donnelly, Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe and Public Expenditure Minister Michael McGrath.
It comes as high-level TDs in government parties raise concerns about the possibility of moving to Level 5. Barry Cowen, Offaly’s TD and former agriculture minister, tweeted on Friday that the state should “maintain Level 3, work with him, implement, adhere to him ”.
He added: “Going to 4 or 5 is running and hiding from Covid.”
Senior Cabinet officials have privately indicated a deep concern about moving to Level 5, with the impact on the economy first on their minds. There are also concerns that the recently announced restrictions have not had a chance to adapt, and that there could be a conflict with the teachers’ unions if the schools remained open.
James Lawless, the TD for Fianna Fáil of Kildare North, told The Irish Times on Saturday that if Level 5 is introduced, the oversight of the school system by the Health and Safety Authority (HSA) should increase by doing Covid -19 a notifiable disease. Once a reportable illness case is submitted to the HSA, an inspection follows, he said.
“While transmission among students remains low, schools are also a workplace and the relevant legislation needs to be amended to make Covid-19 a mandatory reportable event. We have tens of thousands of teachers on the front line and they deserve the same protections as other industries, ”Lawless said.
While the overall cabinet mood is against a move to level 5, some sources indicated on Friday that an increase in restrictions may meet less resistance at the cabinet table due to circulating virus levels.
On Saturday, government TDs expressed conflicting views on the possibility of going to level 5. A Fine Gael TD said the government is “damned if we do it and damned if we don’t, the virus is getting out of control, yes the trend continues there, there may be no other option ”.
A Fianna Fáil TD said that the measures introduced during the week should have a chance, and that the impact of the Level 3 restrictions introduced in recent weeks will only become apparent this weekend. The TD said the government should wait, but review the situation in the middle of next week.
Another former minister, Michael Ring, described the proposed change as a “cruel, cruel” move. It is cruel to the elderly, cruel to the young, cruel to people with mental illness and cruel to people who are waiting for all kinds of operations, ”said veteran TD de Mayo.
“The closure has affected many companies, many jobs. People are depressed. They are depressed and depressed.
“The government is handling it badly now. We have to make both political and medical decisions, “he said.
“My recommendation is that we should go back to Level 2, where we at least have a little normality.”
Jim O’Callaghan, Fianna Fáil’s TD for Dublin Bay South, also questioned the wisdom of the move on Friday.
He said that going to Level 5 is not “living with Covid” and urged that the Government “wake up” to the impact of the measures.
“It is, in effect, a blockade,” he said. “When deciding which level to move to, we must take into account the repercussions of moving to level 5. It will have a very negative impact on young people’s lives and mental health.”
“At some point we have to realize the damage we are inflicting on the lives of young people. Their education, employment, hobbies, entertainment and relationships have been hampered or severely damaged by the restrictions, and they will be further damaged if they go to level 5. “
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