A landmark moment but long path to recovery lies ahead

No-one can dispute the significance of the news from the Department of Health. Not a single new case of the virus was detected at health labs across the Province, the first time that has happened since the introduction of the crippling lockdown at the end of March.

The number of new cases has been falling for weeks of course, but we have probably reached the ‘no new cases’ landmark sooner than some expected.

Health minister Robin Swann, who suffered despicable online abuse (and threats) in the early weeks of this crisis, and not forgetting some criticism from partners in government, deserves praise for his handling of the crisis.

Mr Swann has often struck an ominously downbeat and cautious tone during press conferences, particularly during the beginning of lockdown, and while that was frustrating at times, in the long run it might have influenced people to adhere to the rules on staying at home during the full lockdown, and latterly following social distancing advice as restrictions have been eased.

Critics might say Mr Swann was excessive in his prediction about the total number of deaths Northern Ireland could suffer, and he was certainly far out with his numbers.

A long path to recovery now stretches ahead. Economically, the cost of the lockdown has been crippling, and there will be further pain ahead for businesses here who simply couldn’t sustain several months of little or no income.

The Executive’s greatest failure has been on education. It was an obvious move to bring back children on a staggered basis at the end of this month, as much for their social wellbeing as anything else, but incredibly, even a full-time return for pupils in September, has been placed in doubt. If we continue along the current path, and there is no second surge, it would be unthinkable for schools not to return properly in autumn.