Micheál Martin gambles on level 3 to halt Covid-19 surge

Taoiseach Micheál Martin announced the decision to move Ireland on to Level Three restrictions in response to rising Covid-19 cases. Picture: Julien Behal

Taoiseach Micheál Martin has staked his reputation as Taoiseach and that of his government on Ireland withstanding a second wave of Covid-19.

Mr Martin announced that the government would reject the public health advice of the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) and put the country on Level 3 of the restrictions instead of the Level 5 requested by CMO Dr Tony Holohan.

The announcement came as a further 518 cases of the virus were reported across the country, with 134 in Dublin and 53 in Cork. 

Under the announcement, visitors to homes will be capped at six from one other household, people should remain in their county unless essential and workers are asked to work from home unless necessary.

Weddings can go head but with a limit of 25 people, as can funerals. Visits to nursing homes are suspended, non-elite sport is cancelled and all retail will remain open. Schools will also remain open.

The Taoiseach, who did not attend a press briefing but spoke to the nation through a televised address, said that there has been "an exponential growth" in the rates of the virus and said that the virus would continue to have an impact until an effective vaccine was available and widely distributed.

Explaining the Government’s decision to reject the Nphet advice, Mr Martin said:

“Businesses are beginning to recover and vital public health services are still backlogged. 

Severe restrictions now would have a very damaging impact, which those services and businesses may not be able to recover from. 

"That said, the government has decided to increase the level of controls in most of the country and to step up efforts to ensure compliance with guidelines. 

“We have decided at this stage, not to move to a more comprehensive lockdown. 

It's important to understand that the potential implications of such a move are severe and very different from those we faced earlier this year. 

"It could involve the loss of hundreds of thousands of jobs with these concentrated and families and communities, which are already experiencing difficulties,” he said.

“And an immediate comprehensive lockdown would make it much harder to deal with non-Covid health concerns, including the impact of isolation on the mental health of many of our people,” he added.

He said the facts show that there is an exponential increase in the rate of transmission right across the country.

“This virus will continue to have an impact. No matter how much we want to forget the virus, and move on with our lives, We must continue to manage it and protect ourselves,” he said.

Health Minister Stephen Donnelly said that "the virus is responsible" for what happens in the coming weeks, saying that NPHET is providing advice and government is making decisions as best both can.

"The only enemy is Covid-19. That's what we're fighting.

It's not a question of who's right and who's wrong.

Mr Donnelly said that there had been no damage done to the relationship between NPHET and the Government, despite the Tánaiste Leo Varadkar being scathing in his criticism of the body.

Mr Varadkar speaking on RTÉ television, hit out at Nphet for "landing this on us as a surprise", "That shouldn't have happened, The CMO accepted it and it will not happen again," Mr Varadkar said.

Mr Donnelly said that Dr Holohan accepted the government decision not to go to Level 5, saying that the CMO accepts the government's need to weigh other considerations.

Mr Donnelly said he had not seen Mr Varadkar's comments.

Dr Holohan's letter

Dr Holohan, who is back in the CMO's job after taking a leave of absence, made a pointed statement after his advice had been rejected by the government.

“It is vital that we do everything in our power now to arrest the current trajectory nationally and very substantially suppress the virus back down to a low level of transmission in advance of the winter months."

Moving to Level 5 restrictions is the “only opportunity” to get Covid “back under control” and keep schools open, the Government was warned by Nphet.

A letter sent on Sunday to Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly warned of a “significant and deteriorating” epidemiological situation.

It recommended that Level 5 measures be introduced from midnight on Monday for four weeks. 

It says NPHET is sensitive to the impact on businesses, individuals and families but that the action is “the only opportunity to get this disease back under control while keeping schools open”.

It says a graduated approach “will not have sufficient or timely impact on the trajectory and scale of the disease”, and would ultimately result in Level 5 measures being put in place, whereas an immediate enactment of the harshest measures will prevent deaths, protect vulnerable people and enable schools to remain open.

Earlier in the day, the GAA announced that all club games would be suspended due to a lack of adherence to guidelines across the country.

"The decision has been taken in the interest of public safety following a number of incidents that have been brought to our attention in recent days. In particular, post-match celebrations and a lack of social distancing at certain events have proved disappointing and problematic."

Pub sector body the VFI said that the decision would see 50,000 bar staff lose their jobs in "another devastating development".