Republic’s government right to reject move to total lockdown, Stormont should do the same

Micheal Martin, the taoiseach, and his deputy, the Tanaiste Leo Varadkar, have spent the last two days defending their decision to refuse a recommendation from the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) to move the Republic to Level 5 restrictions (lockdown).

Their approach hasn’t won universal approval – Mr Varadkar has faced criticism for comments he made about the Republic’s chief medical officer – but the coalition is right to reject a move back to full lockdown.

Mr Martin said yesterday that “hundreds of thousands” of people face losing their jobs if the Republic returns to lockdown. Diane Dodds, the Stormont economy minister, has repeatedly warned of that scenario here. Chancellor Rishi Sunak, the one figure to emerge with any credit from the Tory government’s handling of the coronavirus crisis, also warned yesterday against a national lockdown.

Professor Ian Young, Stormont’s chief scientific advisor, presented another Northern Ireland lockdown as virtually inevitable at the end of last week, but that is not his decision to make. It is worrying that Robin Swann, the health minister, has also appeared to hint at support for another lockdown.

Some portray this as an argument between health and saving the economy, but lockdown affects much more than the economy and jobs. As Mr Martin said yesterday, lockdown affects lower paid and lower income groups more, school closures impact more on disadvantaged children.

Professor Young did point out yesterday that Northern Ireland has a “significantly lower number of Covid inpatients” than when lockdown was introduced back in March. In other words, another steep rise in Covid-related deaths here can yet be avoided as can another disastrous lockdown.