9 More Weeks of Lockdown is What Covid Policy Failure Looks Like - Tóibín
In response to Government briefings which stated that Lockdown will continue for 9 more weeks until mid-May, Aontú Leader Peadar Tóibín TD has stated;
“A highly restricted Lockdown for 9 more weeks till mid May is what policy failure looks like. This is a real illness with devastating consequences for many people, but Lockdown itself has also a devastating effect on society. From cancelled hospital treatment for critical illnesses such as Cancer, Heart Disease, Stroke and Mental Health to the crippling economic consequences for hundreds of thousands of people. Many people will struggle to face into another 9 weeks of isolation, claustrophobia and loneliness given the level of sacrifice that they have made already”.
“90% of Covid cases in this state are the British Variant. This is a testament to the failure of this government to protect our ports and airports. The lack of All Ireland cooperation has also weakened significantly out defences against this illness. The weakness in the protection of our Nursing Homes has left the most vulnerable, the most exposed. The ongoing lack of capacity in the Health Service in terms of Human Resource and Beds has also worsened outcomes. And finally the slowness of the Vaccination programme is incredible. A two week delay in vaccinating Nursing Homes means that today the state is still administering vaccinations to residents of Care Homes a full 19 days after Stephen Donnelly said that this would be done. The daily average number of total doses administered is 5,500 in this state. In Scotland its 60,000. From this differential, from this failure of government policy, we get 9 more weeks of devastating lockdown”.
