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Covid-19 Pandemic

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 7 October 2020

Wednesday, 7 October 2020

Ceisteanna (228)

Thomas Gould

Ceist:

228. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Health the essential services that are required to close under level 3 restrictions. [29055/20]

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Freagraí scríofa

As the Deputy is aware, the Resilience and Recovery 2020-2021: Plan for Living with COVID-19 was published by the Government on 15 September, 2020. This Framework sets out Ireland's approach to managing and living with COVID-19 in a range of areas over the next 6 - 9 months.

The plan sets out five levels of response, each with a number of measures designed to help us all lower COVID-19 transmission, and setting out what is permitted at that moment in time. It aims to allow society and businesses to be able to operate as normally as possible, while continuing to suppress the virus. The plan is framed to account for periods when there is a low incidence of the disease, with isolated clusters and low community transmission, through to situations where there is a high or rapidly increasing incidence, widespread community transmission and the pandemic is escalating rapidly in Ireland and globally. It recognises the need for society and business to be allowed to continue as normally as possible and is designed so that either national or county level restrictions can be applied.

Each level outlines what is permitted for social or family gatherings, work and public transport, bars, hotels and restaurants, exercise activities and religious services. The Framework was informed by expert advice and recommendations from the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET).

The plan seeks to balance the risks of different types of gatherings against the desire to allow normal activities to proceed in so far as possible.

During this pandemic, the application of the public health advice measures to suppress the disease transmission is intended to minimise the risks to public health whilst striking the right balance in:

- prioritising some activities over others, including health and social care services, education and other essential needs.

- protecting work and economic activity, and other key societal interests such as sports and important family gatherings, thereby allowing as much of society and business to continue as “normally” as possible while continuing to make every effort to suppress the virus.

.As I am sure the Deputy can appreciate, COVID-19 spreads when individuals and groups come into close contact with one another, enabling the virus to move from one person to another. COVID-19 is infectious in a person with no symptoms, or for the period of time before they develop symptoms. For this reason, we are all asked to be extra careful when socialising and working with others. For now, we must act like we have the virus to protect those around us from infection.

Ireland is moving from a short-term emergency response approach to a medium-term approach to managing risk and repairing the damage that COVID-19 has inflicted on society. All counties in Ireland will be at Level 3 of the Plan for living with Covid-19 from midnight Tuesday 6 October. At level 3, the priority is to keep all essential services open

Further information on the public health measures in currently in place at level 3 can be found at https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/ad569-level-3/

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