New Covid lockdown 'will cripple the country' warns Fitzmaurice

The Galway-Roscommon TD Michael Fitzmaurice said he believes the reintroduction of "a full Covid-19 lockdown" would "cripple" the country.

The Government will make an announcement this evening (Monday) about new restrictions that will be introduced in response to the growth in the number of cases in recent weeks.

In advance of this evening's announcement, Deputy Fitzmaurice has issued a statement in which he argued that alternatives to a "a full lockdown" should be examined.

"At the moment, we are at a very fine line in this country. People are basically at the end of their tether, having put in a huge effort to date to combat this virus.

"It is my opinion that there are certain things which we could do that would help the situation without crippling the rest of the economy.

"For instance, off licences could be closed and I would actually have pubs open until 10pm at night with no takeaway drink available.

"I believe this would help stop a lot of the house parties and a lot of the domestic problems that have arisen in recent weeks.

"We must remember that, whether it is Level 1 or Level 5, the only way we are going to reduce numbers is through a buy-in from communities and people adhering to the regulations.

"And it is up to every individual to make an effort to try and flatten this curve.

"Another stringent lockdown would have grave consequences when it comes to peoples' mental health and general physical health. These people, when speaking to them on the ground, are very much opposed to more stringent measures coming in.

"As a country, we also have to balance the economy. We cannot continue with these stop-start scenarios, especially when it comes to businesses – otherwise they won't survive.

"Plus, what is the plan after the lockdown if the Government press the nuclear button? What happens then? Are we still going to see a rise in cases and is it going to be 'yo-yoing' in and out of lockdowns for the foreseeable future?

"While medical personnel are experts in their chosen field, there a lot more parameters to consider when making decisions which impact the entire country."

He said money had been "thrown" at the HSE since March in order to combat the virus but he felt the health service was still unprepared for the demands it will face in the coming months.

"It was flagged very early on by the experts, in fairness, that additional beds would be required leading into the winter period. But it appears that no matter how much money you throw at the HSE – whether it be for testing, contact tracing or required infrastructure – it cannot get its house in order.

"This is a real worry, as I have not seen as much money being thrown at a single body without adequate results being achieved. And this is not the fault of frontline workers, it is those higher up who seem to be dropping the ball on this," the local TD concluded.