Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has today reiterated the restrictions around Covid-19 may not be relaxed on 5 May as proposed and if they do, it certainly won’t happen all at once.
Speaking on Thursday as part of leaders’ statements on Covid-19, Mr. Varadkar posed the question of when we can begin to lift the current restrictions and “start getting things back to normal bit by bit”.
“The answer”, he says “isbeing developed as we speak, based on expert opinion, and we have the advantage of being able to look at some countries that are a few weeks ahead of where we are at and seeing how their strategies are working.”
“I do not know yet if we will be able relax restriction on May 5th. I do know that if we can, it will be gradual and will happen over a number of months.”
“And, as we know from Asia, they may even need to be re-imposed. Only a scientific breakthrough – a vaccine or an effective anti-viral medicine will truly allow life to go back to being as it was.”
“Other breakthroughs – like a reliable antibody test – could really help though. And I am optimistic about the capacity of the brilliant minds in our international pharmaceutical companies and universities to deliver.”
