Catherine Murphy TD, co-leader of the Social Democrats, said that the new restrictions announced by the Government this evening are difficult to understand in the absence of up to date information on the transmission of new case numbers and clusters.
Deputy Murphy said:
“The latest restrictions come just four days after 200 Covid-19 cases were confirmed, yet we still don’t know the source of more than half of these and we will also need a breakdown of the 190 new cases revealed today. The public deserve to be told if there is actually any suspected transmission at matches or on public transport so they can better understand the rationale behind the decisions being made.
“It is a matter of serious concern that the HSE hasn’t yet got its systems in place to ensure testing and tracing at the speed required.
“What exactly is the Government’s long-term plan to deal with Covid-19 and is the response to every upsurge going to be a further lockdown? This approach is not sustainable on any level.
“Public support for these latest measures will evaporate if the science does not underpin decisions. The second lockdown in Kildare, Laois and Offaly has continued to cause fury and there is considerable evidence that many people are ignoring the restrictions because they feel it was a lazy decision and the Government just wanted to be seen to be doing something.
“Once again, the Government is being reactive rather than proactive when it comes to dealing with this pandemic.”
August 18, 2020