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LAST UPDATE | 12 Mar 2020
THE ST PATRICK’S Festival has announced the cancellation of its festival cultural programme, which it had been planned to run over the weekend.
The cultural programme included indoor events that had been deemed safe to date, as well as many events that are presented by external partners of the festival.
Many of these events had been planned for this holiday weekend, despite the cancellation by the government of all St Patrick’s Day parades last Monday.
In a statement this afternoon, the St Patrick’s Festival said it had taken the decision to cancel these events in line with the wider actions being taken in response to the constantly changing nature of the coronavirus global health crisis.
The decision was circulated shortly after the government’s announcement this morning regarding the spread of the coronavirus, Covid-19.
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar gave a press conference from New York, in which he ordered that schools, colleges and childcare facilities should close from 6 pm this evening to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
All gatherings of over 100 (indoor) and 500 (outdoor) were also cancelled, as well as the closing of all museums, galleries and tourism sites.
In a similar development this afternoon, MCD Productions announced it was cancelling all of its events that fall under the government’s directive.
In a statement, MCD said it was working with artists and venues to reschedule all dates and that original tickets purchased for events would remain valid.
Other events and locations which have been closed or cancelled include:
St Patrick’s Festival organisers said they were “acting in the best interests of public health and safety and in an effort to play our part in the nationwide efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus.”
“While extremely disappointing, our paramount commitment is to the wellbeing of our artists and participants, our audiences and communities and our own Festival team”, the statement said.
A spokesperson said, “while the Festival’s own events are being cancelled, other events that appear in the programme may still be proceeding and we support the individual decisions of all our partners regarding their own events.”
Anyone seeking further information is being urged to check www.stpatricksfestival.ie for further details.
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If the cost of gas and oil goes up, the cost of generating electricity via those goes up but profits shouldn’t so why are the energy companies making huge profits?
@Jim Buckley Barrett: all end user prices are based on gas unit which has rocketed.
Most energy is generated from Coal, nuclear and renewable now.
Those are making massive profit. All based on gas unit as they are tied together for market reasons but are looking moving to new pricing system.
@Jim Buckley Barrett: Consumer prices are based on spot price on markets, which is a result of speculation. Energy companies probably hedged prices anyway. They aren’t actually paying the spot price.
@Jim Buckley Barrett: As a result of hedging as someone above pointed out…… Electric Ireland as a ringed fence business made a 44 million loss on their interim report….. Oil doesnt generate much electricity for us. It is around the same wholesale price as it was before the war. Its still expensive now because its traded in dollars and the euro is weak vs the dollar.
@Jim Buckley Barrett: Well Leo doesn’t envisage a mini-budget but won’t rule it out, more double speak so that he can lie and hold a mini-budget if FFG are still struggling in the opinion polls next year. They will probably have a mini-budget for popularity reasons before they hit total rock bottom in the hope that they can fool the electorate once again.
They are not energy credits for households, they are energy credits for price gouging power companies
Why don’t they drop the commercial model of the ESB and only charge the consumers what they have to? We do still own it.
Everyone can move back to Electric Ireland and let the price gougers match the price or sink.
We shouldn’t be using our taxes to feed their profits.
@John Smith: That’s anti competitive. We have to create an artificial energy market so that speculators and investors can profit from it.
@Gerard Carthy: We set a new market price, if they fail to adapt, then their business can go the way of the Kodak. Let the market decide. ;)
@John Smith: Every supplier bar Electric Ireland (under ESB) goes bust in that case. Then the other suppliers take multi million/billion lawsuits against the government for illegally subsidising Electric Ireland/fixing prices……… Electric Ireland as a ringed fence business has made a loss of 44 million so far this year, despite the increase in prices for their customers. This article explains a bit of it https://m.independent.ie/business/irish/how-esb-can-make-obscene-357m-profit-in-six-months-as-families-hit-by-sky-rocketing-energy-bills-41993649.html
More money from public finances transferred to corporations. Nationalise energy. They won’t as they are wedded to their failed ideologies.
@Shukran Don Dada: other countries have nationalised their energy production and it’s been a disaster. It’s a good sound bite but doesn’t work.
@Paul Clancy: it does!
@Shukran Don Dada: you say that like it’s an easy task and a guarantee!
@SPQH: It may not be easy, is that an excuse to not do something? What we have now isn’t working. Although unwilling to make any hard decisions is the FF &FG way though and the “band-aid” solutions are keeping prices high.
So what happens next year & the year after & the year after that ? We still won’t be able to heat our homes or will the government keep giving out money!
Oh look at me how fiscally responsible I am. Um no – our debt has more than doubled from €110bn to €250bn under your watch!
I won’t be listening to a word he says. He is our version of lizz Truss. But wearing and recording his fondess for nolvety socks. Which I believe are synonymous with narcissists.
@Brian Lee: 100% spot on Brian
Can’t believe this “got into a seat by the skin of his teeth” man is going to be in charge again!
@Patricia O’Brien: I know its a fekn joke, hopefully this will be his last time come election in 2025 if not sooner. A narcissist who is so out of touch with reality its scary.
Totally detached from reality. If we could flash those muppets down the toilet at once, not to hear them or see them would be a great.
@Pavel Shipilov: how did anyone vote for him, he doesn’t live in the real world
Just put a cap on it, seems like throwing money away at this stage when most other countries have capped the price per unit. No one wants these piece meal handouts, means constant worry.
have your say