This health crisis has exposed grave problems with how republicans have been allowed to operate at Stormont

There are some hopeful signs that the spread of the terrible disease is being contained in the UK, but the grim daily death tolls show that we are not yet at a stage where relaxation of lockdown is possible.

With good fortune, concrete evidence will soon emerge to justify such a change in approach.

If Northern Ireland was a normal democracy, some form of investigation would be carried out into Sinn Fein’s conduct in recent weeks.

Indeed, an investigation would be carried out into Julian Smith’s decision to let Simon Coveney have joint stewardship of a return to devolution, resulting in a deal on republican terms without any mechanism for stopping them make this Province seem like a failed state.

Instead, republicans have within weeks of the restoration been allowed to shatter any sense of the collective responsibility on which sensible government depends.

Sinn Fein abandoned the executive position on school closures, they promoted a joint order with Dublin for Chinese protection gear that was to a significant extent dud and which in any case didn’t exist, and they have briefed against Mr Swann and relentlessly against the overall UK approach.

The health minister, Robin Swann, and the first minister, Arlene Foster, in particular have been put in an intolerable position, yet have, as the letter writer says opposite, reacted with dignity, knowing that if anything goes wrong with Stormont, unionists will be blamed, and realising that in any event tackling this crisis takes priority.

But we must be in no doubt as to the grave problems that this crisis has revealed, and which were apparent anyway during the SF blackmail over the collapse of Stormont.

Meanwhile, urgent answers are needed from local ministers about why a £60 million downpayment is being spent tomorrow on a high risk protection supply order from China.

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