Coronavirus: NI ministers to discuss call to tighten Covid rules

Stormont ministers will meet later to consider a request from Health Minister Robin Swann for new restrictions after a sharp increase in Covid-19 cases.

Swann called for “concrete” action, saying on Wednesday that the time had come to “limit people-to-people contacts.”

Northern Ireland currently has the UK’s highest rate of Covid-19 cases per 100,000 people.

Meanwhile, Stormont sources told the BBC that ministers will consider reopening pubs that only serve drinks later this month.

It is understood that the date of September 21 is being considered to allow pubs that do not serve food to resume business.

If that date is agreed upon by the Stormont Executive at Thursday’s meeting, it would be the same day non-food pubs would reopen in the Republic of Ireland.

However, the Irish government said the decision would be kept under review.

Licensed trade representatives in Northern Ireland have been lobbying Stormont ministers for several months to allow the non-food pubs to reopen.

The reopening of exclusive bars for drinks has been delayed several times.

‘Worst position’

At a press conference on Wednesday, Swann and Northern Ireland’s top scientific and medical officials outlined their concerns about the recent sharp rise in infections.

Chief Scientific Officer Professor Ian Young said Northern Ireland’s position was currently “worse than England, Scotland, Wales or the Republic of Ireland”.

In the UK as a whole, the cumulative total of 14-day cases per 100,000 members of the population is around 22.

In Northern Ireland, the equivalent figure exceeds 35 cases per 100,000 people.

Swann said in the same report that if a foreign country had Northern Ireland’s Covid-19 figures, Stormont’s ministers would “impose quarantine” on anyone traveling from that state.

It’s all a long way from the days of early summer when ministers lined up to announce a series of measures to ease the shutdown.

Northern Ireland’s infection rate is now so high that people here would have to quarantine themselves when going to England, Scotland and Wales if we weren’t part of the UK.

Just as there have been localized blockades in Great Britain, it is our turn.

Robin Swann declined to specify what measures he recommends, but they are likely to be concentrated in urban areas like Belfast and Craigavon ​​in zip codes where the infection rate is highest.

Sources say house parties are a major concern and can be considered more severe penalties.

The Health Minister added that now more people in the older age groups were beginning to test positive and warned that the disease would again “spread to the medically vulnerable.”

“By now, we are all well aware of the particular dangers of that and the implications for our loved ones,” Swann said.

“We know tragically what happens when it slips through the many layers of protection and reaches our residences and hospital wards.”

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However, the health minister’s approach to the pandemic has been heavily criticized by Sammy Wilson of the DUP.

Wilson issued a statement questioning why Swann had commissioned a second Nightingale Hospital for Northern Ireland, when other parts of the health service were struggling.

“Despite the fact that only 2.6% of ICU beds are occupied by people suffering from Covid-19 and the number of people hospitalized as a result of the virus is less than 30, the Minister of Health has now decided to spend more money, dedicate more resources and link more doctors and nurses with another Nightingale Hospital in Whiteabbey, “said Wilson.

The DUP deputy added that some family doctors had been reassigned to Covid wards “where they have little or no work to do,” while many patients face difficulties in getting an appointment with the GP.

Wilson claimed that Swann gave the impression that Covid-19 was his “only priority” and accused him of making statements that “give the impression that putting your nose outside the door is almost inviting immediate death.”

When asked about Wilson’s statement at Wednesday’s briefing, Swann said he had not read the comments and would “step down” to comment on them.