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NORTHERN IRELAND IS currently experiencing its pandemic worst case scenario, the deputy First Minister has warned.
A further 759 cases of Covid-19 were reported in Northern Ireland today and 16 more deaths.
Michelle O’Neill said dire predictions made last March about the potential pressures the region’s health service could face were now coming true.
O’Neill said that while Northern Ireland had now passed the peak of new infections in the current Covid-19 wave, the associated surge in hospital admissions was still to come.
Her stark assessments came after health chiefs warned that the number of Covid-19 patients being treated in hospital could double by the third week in January.
The chief executives of Northern Ireland’s six health and social care trusts also released a joint statement outlining the “very serious” situation.
The Western Trust issued the appeal for the South West Acute Hospital in Enniskillen on Twitter.
“Attention all off-duty staff in the vicinity of SWAH. Due to increasing pressures this evening on the NI Healthcare System, we are appealing to you to contact or go directly to the hospital,” the trust said yesterday.
Three hours later, the Western Trust thanked staff who responded to the appeal and said the “situation has since stabilised”.
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1/2 We would like to thank all our staff who responded to the staff appeal, issued earlier this evening. We were overwhelmed by the offers of help and support from staff who have already given so much over the past number of months. pic.twitter.com/lufJzII3ct
The situation also intensified at the weekend in the Southern Trust area, where Covid-19 infection rates are currently highest in Northern Ireland.
Over the weekend, Craigavon Area Hospital and Daisy Hill Hospital in Newry were in danger of being swamped with new cases.
Off duty staff coming in to help treat the influx of patients helped avoid the declaration of a major incident.
Additionally, a joint statement from the NI health and social care trusts said that early last month, the trusts issued a “stark warning” about pressure across the system in NI.
“At that time we stressed that several of Northern Ireland’s acute hospitals were already operating beyond capacity,” the statement said.
Within days, the pressure that the system was under was evident through the images shown across media outlets of multiple ambulances queuing outside Emergency Departments.
The statement said the situation is “very serious” with modelling predictions indicating that in the third week of January, health and social care “will be trying to contend with double the number of Covid positive patients compared to the current position today”.
“Our staff, although exhausted, will once more go above and beyond to do the best they can for as many people as possible, and we thank them for it.
It will definitely not be easy and the care that we are able to provide will at times fall short of the high standards we normally deliver but we will do our very best.
“Desperately ill patients whether Covid or non-Covid will always be the ones being prioritised.”
Yesterday, 1,112 further Covid-19 cases and 17 deaths were confirmed in NI.
A new “stay-at-home” order came into effect in the North on Friday. It means that police have the power to order people to return home if they are out without a reasonable reason.
This will remain in place until 6 February.
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Making RTE1/2/RTE Player available online to watch abroad (not the RTE International player – It seems to be only the lotto available on that). At the moment I have to use a VPN to trick RTE that I’m actually in the country watching it.
@David Evans – is EarthVPN reliable and fast? I’m using PrivateInternetAccess (for the beeb & ch4 – they aren’t in Ireland) and they get hung up sometimes in the evenings. My subscription is up soon & I’m looking for another one – esp. one that has an Irish IP address.
Cyberghostvpn cheapest option can often be bought for $5 per year. Just change the first two letters to ‘ie’ and you’ve an Irish VPN even though this is charged separately and a higher tariff normally.
Give me a call Gilmore , I’ll fill you in on what it’s like to have to move to the other side of the world because you spineless f.ckwits have ruined our country , what it’s like to only see you’re family every couple of years because of the cost of flights and work commitments . Roll on the elections and bye bye you ignoramus .
No Ann, they didn’t. They clung to the shirt tails of diplomats supping all the free booze that was put before them without a single care in the world for anyone but themselves.
The Constitutional Convention has recommended that voting rights in Presidential elections should be extended to the Irish abroad and Irish citizens in Northern Ireland. It’s small and largely symbolic but a start and fitting with the role of the President IMO.
The way the Convention works is that Government has four months to respond in the Oireachtas. The deadline for their response is March 26.
There is no logical reason why Irish abroad should be allowed to vote in elections in Ireland. It would dilute the influence of the vote of people who are actually affected by Irish government decisions. For a president it’s fine maybe because they don’t really do anything.
Liam, you’re another one with little idea what it is you’re saying. I’m working abroad, but my home and family are still in Ireland. I’ve a house and two cars that I run with money I earn overseas because it’s the only way of surviving. I send all my money home to run that home and family. Why should I not be entitled to have a say in who gets into power?
I know what I’m saying. I live abroad. Decisions made by the Irish government don’t affect me. They affect family still living there, but that’s why they have a vote. The idea that people like me who pay no tax in Ireland should have a say in decisions is ludicrous.
A lot of us do pay tax in Ireland because we send all our money home to pay our mortgages, utility bills, and day to day living expenses for our wives and children still living at home.
I know a lot of you won’t see this as a problem but it is. I’m currently working in the Middle East paying no taxes and desperate to come home to my children . Problem is the government will back tax me on PRSI on money I earned over here it makes it impossible for me and others to come home as we are here to look after our families at home and paying in theory for two homes, where are we supposed to get the money to pay them back taxes if we came home?
Ok let me think.
You pay no taxes where you are and you are wondering where will you find the money if you return. Hmmm no taxes where you are. Hmmm. No. Sorry cant think of anything.
Begrud, not sure if you can read, to keep a roof over my families head I work over here paying rent, food etc. I’m also paying for my wife & children at home everything zero government handouts, but contributing huge in indirect taxes and new charges, property etc. at the end of the month I have nothing left. How can I come home find a job with the Spector of the Irish tax man over my shoulder? The system is designed to keep Irish citizens out of their own country.
Back off Begrudgy; you haven’t a clue what you’re talking about and are way out of your depth even entering into this debate. I too am Middle East based and sending home just about every red cent I earn in order to keep family comfortable, and each of those red cents is taxed on what it buys in Ireland. I see my family three times a year so don’t you dare talk percentages to me, you gowl.
Asked a simple question to learn more. Jesus christ chill out. What % are the government looking to take of you if you return to Ireland. Whats so wrong about that question.
By God him and stickies will listen after the local elections .. If there ever was a politican that would be considered useless at what he does he surely fits the bill
How about connecting with them before they leave ya bollocks , worst case , go to the airports and you can see what they have to say to you at the departures gate , bet ya won’t , and I know he will read this , I’ll be at the gate myself on the 8th April ,Dublin to newyork , can’t afford all the taxes , tv licences , you name it here , going to find a place to stay to move my family out soon , country is done for now , full goverment needs to be sacked , we can hire a company to run it better , how about Anderson consulting , they do all the work for ya anyway with more of our money
The great governments over the last 25 years have helped with immigration as they “the TD’s” were so busy lining their pockets so my reply to Gilmore and Co is F off
Fair point Bill. We had to leave because of grossly inept and corrupt politicians. It’ll take a bit of work to get me back, permanently. Even the Gardai are now in turmoil.
And, of course, looking at the paedohile priest, corrupt politician and thieving banker mentioned – it is noteworthy that none were convicted.
Despite it being obvious to so many that they were up to no good.
Why return when the incumbent government remains impotent?
It’ll take a few more St Patrick’s Day visits and smiles, by politicians – to convince me to go back to a country that is now a ‘work in progress’…..
If our government is to genuinely consider how it can better connect with the Irish abroad – how it can really deliver on the ‘status, rights and entitlements’ of Irish citizens overseas – then it needs to take their right to vote seriously.
That we completely disenfranchise our citizens, with no room for manoeuver and no regard for how long they might be gone, or the circumstances in which they left, makes us regrettably distinct in a European (and a global) context. We are out of step with over 120 countries worldwide, and the vast majority of the EU28, in how we deal with migration, citizenship, and the intersection of the two.
I would hope that this review will take account of September’s Constitutional Convention, which overwhelmingly supported a vote in Presidential elections. I hope that it receives input from the numerous (and growing) emigrant communities overseas that *do* want some level of representation as Irish citizens. I hope that, in the face of inevitable distrust and a 70m-strong strawman, that it recognises that Ireland would be legislating for reform in a modern context: one in which many precedents and models exist – employing various controls, such as time and residency limits, or a set number of reserved seats – from which we could base laws that allow for the political representation of Irish citizens abroad, whilst respecting the sovereignty of citizens at home.
Have been in Australia for five years now, one change I would like would be for Ireland to allow temporary car insurance like every other EU country does. Would be nice to insure car online then fly home and drive, but Ireland is the only EU country that does not allow temporary car insurance, so have to spend first day back on phone trying to get insured. Some fair non biased advice on visas and working rights for new emigrants would be a good idea too
And Road Tax. I pay EUR1,390 a year for a car I get to drive drive less than 3,000kms in the 30 days annual leave I get. And before anyone suggests declaring it off the road and then taxing for three months each time I come home, that works out more expensive over a two year leave cycle period that a lot of us out here work on.
Eamon Gilmore allow us to vote after not being in the country for 2 years. Do you think the 80,000 people who left Ireland last year and the year before are going to give you one vote .Also stop messing about with the voting register, very odd things going on there on family member for each family member is accicently removed and allow registeriging your vote in foreign embassies. You have to go just go.
This is just a ploy to increase Labour and his own popularity with Irish abroad and their families at home. Popularity = votes. Nice try Eamon, nice try.
He should have stayed wherever it was he went for Patrick’s day, if you want to vote in Irish elections, then stay here and sign on the dole if you can’t get work, otherwise just pack up and forget about offering up your opinion on how the country should be run day to day when it doesn’t affect you anymore.
When you come back you can vote all you want. Not that it’ll make much difference anyways as all parties the same, except for the shinners of course, they have their own unique brand of bull sh1t, which would be identical to the others once they got into power, god forbid .
A thought -
How come we are all concerned about helping helping the “undocumented Irish” in America be able to work & become “documented”, but when it comes to “undocumented [insert other country here]” people in Ireland we are up in arms about them abusing the system?
[My disclaimer: I'm a "documented Irish" person in America - I didn't come here until I was "documented"]
That’s the gross and incredible hypocrisy of the Irish media and psyche.. one rule for us another for others.. This explains the violence suffered by African Americans in the US all those centuries ago, when the Irish decided to become white.. This is clearly explained in the book “When the Irish became white”
Victor that book is a piece of psychological warfare aimed at undermining white people written by a cultural Marxist Noel Ignatiev, who may well look white himself, but does nt identity himself as a white man, quote:”The key to solving the social problems of our age,is to abolish the white race”, really you ll want to come up with better than quoting somebody who is promoting the genocide of white people, even the title of his book is a giveaway, whiteness or Caucasian is a recognised subdivision of humanity not something you can turn yourself into, but, I suppose that goes against that other meme of Marxist warfare that there is something called “white privilege”, the only people I see in my daily life here in Ireland with privilege are third world immigrants who seem to think they have some right to live here and live comfortably at our expense.
But I agree with you the government should take back the Irish and throw out all the Nigerians and others they have imported. Why force your young to illegally emigrate to a nation whose government doesn’t want White immigrants just so you can turn around and turn Ireland into Africa North?
Because that’s what a government of a country is actually meant to do, look after its own people first, ie those people who are culturally and genetically Irish.
Well here’s another book you ought to read then while you are throwing blame around, To Hell or to Barbados by Sean O Callaghan or another White Cargo the Forgotten History of Britain’s White Slaves in America by Don Jordan and Michael Walsh, over 300,000 Irish men, women and children sold into slavery as part of Cromwell’s genocide , African slaves were actually worth more than the Irish because they were not Catholic and where malaria resistance. If a settler beat or tortured an Irishman to death, it was not a crime and it was far cheaper than killing an African slave. The English master began breeding with the Irish the Irish women for profit and pleasure, the children were the property of the master, in time though to increase the market share the settlers began to breed Irish women and African males for a better profit return this produced the “mulatto” complexion and allowed the settlers to save money rather than cross the Atlantic to acquire new ones. Those Irish women did not assent to this union it was rape, rape at the white English master’s insistence but rape of white Irish women by black men nevertheless. I feel no white guilt I will not accept any either. Africans have ran white people out of Africa and are in the process of genociding the white South Africans they should not be in our country at all.
The book I mentioned was not meant to annoy, but to illustrate the injustice in this particular case. Do you not agreed that the terminology should be used correctly to show the illegal status of the Irish illegal immigrants in the US?
No Victor I don’t care what name they are called, I do not care if they are deported either, if they are illegal then they are illegal. However every group looks out for its own, that is the way humanity works, what galls me is knowing that this government has encouraged its own citizens to leave the country and at the same time has thrown out over 70,000 Irish passports to non Irish nationals in cheap tacky ceremonies by a man who by his actions actually makes all the conspiracy theories about the NWQ out to destroy white European countries seem true.
Gilmore, try first of all connecting with the Irish at home, remember them, the electorate you told that if they voted for Labour it would be “Labour’s way and not Frankfurt’s way ” we all now know you were telling untruths as usual.
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