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LAST UPDATE | 24 Feb 2021
THE GOVERNMENT’S REVISED Living with Covid plan is a “wing and a prayer” strategy that contains nothing to give people hope, the Dáil has heard.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin unveiled the new plan yesterday , which will see Level Five restrictions continue until 5 April at the earliest.
But Labour leader Alan Kelly attacked the plan during Leaders’ Questions today, saying it contained nothing new and is entirely reliant on vaccines.
He said: “It’s a hope and see strategy. There’s nothing in it. There’s nothing new in it that we didn’t know already, it’s basically a wing and a prayer and it’s totally reliant on vaccines.
“There’s nothing there to give people hope. The people are in despair.
“I have never in my political career felt the despair I have over the last number of weeks, particularly given all the communications failures that you’ve had.
“And my real issue is that there are no new tools to suppress the virus, nothing in the plan to suppress the virus. Let’s just wait for the vaccines.”
The Taoiseach responded by saying the tools needed to suppress the virus have not changed, regardless of the emergence of new variants of Covid-19.
He said: “The suppressing of the virus, irrespective of form, doesn’t change in terms of what we must do as a society.
“It doesn’t actually change according to the public health experts. What I mean by that is the social distancing, the avoidance of congregation.
“That’s what drives down virus levels. We should be driven by data and not dates. You haven’t specified any metrics this morning in your contribution.”
Vaccines are working, says Taoiseach
Martin also defended the reliance on vaccines, saying there is already evidence that they are working.
He said: “Vaccination is working already in our hospital care settings. It is having a dramatic effect on reducing infection among frontline health care workers.
“(We are) One of the few countries that targeted that area, in terms of the vaccination programme and it is working.
“It’s having a real impact, and it will have an impact on older people, and on those who are most vulnerable.”
Earlier today, Social Democrats co-leader Roisin Shortall criticised the lack of targets in the government’s roadmap.
“We’re continuing to say we’ll do this until April and we’ll see what we do after that. I think that’s the wrong approach – to work on the basis of target dates – we should be talking about target case numbers and then we also should be putting in place, I believe, concrete measures to drive down numbers. They’re staying stubbornly high at the moment, mainly because of the new variant.”
Shortall said it should not be “a matter of wait and see”.
“It should be a case of the government saying ‘these are the steps now that we’re all going to take in order to drive those down those numbers’, so we can be confident that the schools will open – and stay open.
She said there are “major areas” that were not addressed in the plan such as resourcing public health so that more intensive contact tracing can be done.
She said from traffic levels it appears that a lot of people have gone back to the workplace and employers should be “directed to ensure that wherever possible workers should work from home”.
I think there are also issues in relation to low paid workers, those in meat factories, for example, who are in high-risk situations, and some clusters developing there and I think better financial support needs to be provided to people in those circumstances so they don’t feel under pressure to go in to work and they have symptoms.
Cork nursing home
In the Dáil today, the issue of nursing homes was also raised with the Taosieach.
Solidarity/People Before Profit TD Mick Barry has called for a full investigation into an outbreak of Covid-19 at the Ballynoe Nursing Home in Co Cork.
A group of five families affected by the outbreak have joined forces and sought legal advice in a bid to find out why and how the outbreak happened.
The outbreak began on 8 January this year and resulted in all residents and staff contracting the virus, leading to 21 deaths, Barry said.
The Ballynoe home is part of a chain of facilities owned by a fund, he said.
The Taoiseach said he will engage with the Minister for Health on the issue, adding questions about the outbreak deserve “full and comprehensive answers”.
He added: “HIQA (Health Information and Quality Authority) have been engaging regularly with the provider, prior to and since they were notified of the outbreak on 9 January.
“It’s understood that the provider did not request any additional support or ask for any issues to be escalated.
“Following receipt of the statute notification of 14 deaths between February 7 and 9, HIQA carried out a risk inspection on February 11.
“Its inspectors review the arrangements in place for visiting, as well as records heads in relation to visiting and family engagements.
“The chief inspector will prepare an inspection report now, proclaiming its findings and this report then will be published when the full process concludes.”
Martin said he understands that relatives are anxious for engagement, and he will discuss this with the Minister for Health prior to the conclusion of the HIQA report.
As of last night, there were 642 people with Covid-19 in hospital, with 149 people in ICU and a further 103 Covid-19 patients on ventilation.
Yesterday, 575 new cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed in Ireland, and a further 45 people confirmed to have Covid-19 died.
As of 21 February, 353,971 doses of Covid-19 vaccine have been administered in Ireland:
- With reporting from Press Association, Michelle Hennessy and Chrstina Finn
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Jeez, summit fever must have got to him to push on without her. Lower oxygen levels in death zone can’t have helped with rational decision making either.
To be fair she may have just seemed tired. Cerebral oedema affects individuals in different ways, and the onset of the first symptoms is sometimes mistaken for tiredness or a minor illness. She may have looked OK and made a good decision to halt her ascent – there may have been no apparent reason for him to abort too.
“didn’t mean anything to me” that’s what you call the ultimate regret
“It seems that people have this warped idea of vegans being malnourished and weak,” Strydom was quoted as saying.
By climbing the seven summits we want to prove that vegans can do anything and more.”
And now she’s dead…that didn’t really work out too well for the aul vegan crusade they were after and this gobshïte is still bangin on about it, some things are best left unsaid…maybe a steak sandwich might’ve got her top and back.
You are a knob. End of.
If you put down your sandwich and actually read the article you’d see that quote is from her before they started the challenge.
And if you picked your beard out of your face you’d see the second half of the comment
What second half? “This g*bshite is still banging on about it”. The vegan quote is from the lady who died.
Very insensitive the man has lost his wife. You have no class
Vegans can speak after the die ???
He lost his wife taking a huge risk, for what?
She got Ill climbing the world’s most dangerous peak,in the area known as the death zone,what is he confused about?
I imagine He is confused because he lost (quite possibly) the love of his life. That kind of loss, no matter what the circumstances, is confusing when you are lost in grief. No doubt they both prepared for the trip, never thinking that either one would die. My thoughts are with him and her family.
I’m sorry to detract from this man’s loss or the article in question but that’s an amazing picture of Everest.
It’s a pity there was no finer crusade, cause or endeavour they could have chosen – No unfortunate people they could have decided to help out or aid in some manner. No they had to climb a mountain in the noble defence of the physical attributes and potency of people who have chosen to be Vegans. Sorry now but what a massive loss to humanity.
Run a marathon if you want to punish yourself.
Go help at an old peoples home or volunteer at a homeless shelter if you want to help people
Mountains take too many lives, you never get answers. That man has my sincerest sympathy.
Sooo does that mean vegans are weak then?
I was privileged to meet two sherpa brothers a few months ago who hold the record for the most times to climb Everest. Tough tough men, I’d never understand what it takes to climb Everest and the effects on the body but it’s unimaginable for me that if I did I’d leave my wife to continue on alone. That would haunt me forever.
Very sad :(
If you suspect someone has altitude sickness, you descend immediately. If reaching the summit meant nothing why did he do it?
Her time was up, simple as that, everybody dies so it shouldn’t come as a suprise,we’re all just a heartbeat away , enjoy it while u can
The story reminds me of the tower of babloyn in the Bible ,when people believed they could reach the highest peak to touch God an so built it ,until God changed there languages untill they became so confused ,they couldn’t go higher . so God was showing people they could not live by bread , human communication alone ,but by every word that comes from God ,food that is neither steak or vegetables .I think this man is only starting a climb of a life time ,the way he talks of it ,I feel sorry for him.He really did love her , but they choose there fate on that Lowe peak an it was a choice they both agreed onn wat I learn is choices decisions mwy seem good an right , but could be way off regarding a person’s health well been even if we think it’s the right choice .an sometim s the wrong choice can be the right one ,only God knows why he took her .an he is left with a mountain climb with a twist
Oh right, so twas god that took her. OK then.
Allow the woman the dignity of her own volition. She chose this endeavour and its risks. She died because of oxygen starvation to the brain and organs, most likely, not because some myth ‘took her’ for reasons unknown.
I hope her husband finds a way through this grief and gets back to family and friends for some solid support.
God didn’t take her cause God doesn’t exist. But he probably would red thumb you if he could.
have your say