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The move to allow marriage ceremonies for terminally ill people has been described as an “act of compassion.”
Garden centers and recycling centers in Northern Ireland may reopen starting Monday as part of the first steps to ease the shutdown, said Arlene Foster.
On Tuesday, the executive released a five-phase plan to lift the restrictions, but did not include a time frame.
The prime minister said the updated medical council meant the executive could now approve the “tentative first steps.”
Marriage ceremonies where a person is terminally ill will also be permitted.
The executive has emphasized that not all aspects of the first step of his recovery plan will take effect immediately.
Speaking at the executive’s daily press conference on Thursday, Ms. Foster said the executive was trying to be “open and transparent” with the public and that he would post the thinking behind his decision-making on the Department’s website. of health.
‘Act of compassion’
“When we asked where the R number is today, we were told that it is below 0.7 today, so obviously that has an implication,” he added.
Deputy Prime Minister Michelle O’Neill said implementing parts of the first step of the recovery plan was not a decision made lightly.
Father Edward McGee, a spokesman for the Diocese of Down and Connor, said the move to allow marriage ceremonies for the terminally ill was an “act of compassion” by the executive.
“Couples in these circumstances remind us all of what is happening right now, and there is an urgency and a pastoral sensitivity,” she told BBC Radio Ulster’s Evening Extra program.
Ms. Foster said the ministers had authorized the move after hearing the case of a terminally ill woman who wants to get married.
“We feel it was wrong that it could not happen,” added the prime minister.
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Michelle O’Neill (r) said the NI Executive was taking “small steps” when it came to lifting the restrictions
In other developments on Thursday:
- Leo Varadkar is “increasingly confident” that the Republic of Ireland will enter the first phase of lifting its closure restrictions on Monday
- Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council to consider plan to suspend more than half of their workforce due to pandemic
- Some 3,800 substitute teachers survive “day to day” without work or pay due to the virus outbreak.
- Read how a radio station in Dublin got an interview with Holywood star Matt Damon, who ended up quarantined in nearby Dalkey.
Ms. O’Neill said the executive will hold more discussions next week about the possibility of lifting other restrictions, as part of the first step of its recovery plan.
“These are small gradual steps that we are taking,” he added.
Let’s hope today is a small step or a flash of light for people. “
- Read in full: The Road to Recovery for NI Executive
Reopening of gardens and recycling centers can only occur if social distancing measures are followed, Ms. Foster said.
He added that visiting them “will constitute an appropriate reason to travel.”
“It is important to emphasize that any change in the restrictions does not mean that we can relax our behavior in any way,” O’Neill said.
‘Do not flood in garden centers’
Robin Mercer, the owner of a garden center in Belfast, told Evening Extra that it was “great news” for companies like his.
“Many gardeners will be happy, but it also gives us time to involve our staff, conduct risk assessments, and show them how to protect themselves and their clients,” he said.
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Garden centers in England opened to customers on Wednesday
He added that this time of year is the peak season for garden centers because plants have a “shelf life.”
However, customers should not flood garden centers from Monday, Mercer warned.
“I don’t want to see big lines out the door,” he said.
Previously, the Health Department reported five other Covid-19 related deaths in Northern Ireland, mainly in hospitals, with a total of 454.
Three of the deaths occurred since Wednesday, while the other two occurred before, but have now been added to the department’s toll.
These figures are one of two sets published in Northern Ireland: Every Friday, the statistical agency Nisra publishes its weekly update.
Those statistics cover all deaths where the coronavirus has been recorded on the death certificate.
As of May 1, Nisra had recorded 516 Covid-19 related deaths in Northern Ireland.
Why is the R rate important to lift the block?
The R-value, or reproduction number, is at the heart of the executive’s decision to keep the lock in place, at least until the end of May, only by lifting a small number of measures that carry the least risk.
A refers to the average number of people someone with Covid-19 is expected to infect after contracting the virus.
The goal is to keep R below one.
Earlier this week, Ms. Foster said the R rate in NI was at 0.79, falling from 0.8 to 0.9 in the previous two weeks.
The Health Department said the R rate is calculated primarily on intensive care occupation and hospital admissions, but that home care cases have essentially no impact.
The chief scientific adviser to the executive, Professor Ian Young, said the R number for nursing homes in Northern Ireland is “significantly above 1.0 at the moment.”
