It has been a grim year in Northern Ireland since the first Covid death, but with hope a return to normality is near

The anniversary of the first coronavirus death in Northern Ireland is a sobering milestone.

Now the Province has seen 2,000+ deaths of people with Covid. Society here, and round the world, has been turned inside out.

It has been a dreadful 12 months, causing great economic and social, as well as general health, damage.

Yet there is much to be grateful for, amid the gloom. Death totals were far lower than first estimates of 30,000 in NI. Many of those who did die were very old or already terminally ill and had their end hastened by Covid (but Boris Johnson’s near fatal infection aged 55 showed how others died decades younger than their life expectancy).

Aspects of the UK response were poor. The prime minister’s boast about shaking hands in early March was foolish. But people came to behave carefully and we are now far more knowledgeable about how a virus can spread.

Human ingenuity overcame shortages in ventilators and personal protective equipment. Digital advances made remote working and social contact easier. We have all had to think more about horrors such as loneliness.

NI was fortunate to be backed by the financial firepower of the Treasury.

Also to be part of the UK vaccine rollout, which is resuming in Europe after the AstraZeneca scare.

If the success of getting jabs to vulnerable people and the ongoing responsible public conduct continue to drive down infection rates, a return to normality might be near.

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