Photo – Inspired by this week’s ITV drama Quiz, cartoonist Blower weighs up stand-in Prime Minister Dominic Raab’s coroanvirus lockdown dilemma
Ben Lowry, Deputy Editor of the Belfast News Letter summarised the scene last evening. He writes –
Northern Ireland tends to take Easter Monday and Tuesday as holiday, as opposed to Good Friday and Easter Monday.
This year, for all the abnormality of the times, it still had the traditional holiday feel of good weather and a sleepy pace.
Our front page on Wednesday was of a food bank being stocked in central Belfast in bright sunshine.
But the pleasant conditions belie some of the alarming trends that we report such as our lead story on the jump in care home deaths, and ongoing fears of care home staff. One home owner told us his staff still had insufficient protective gear.
We reported that the hospitality industry fears that 25% of NI restaurants might never return.
But the public is determined to keep spirits up. Tonight musical instruments that are popular in the Orange tradition such as a Lambeg drum will join the NHS applause.
Meanwhile, Stormont is extending lockdown for three more weeks but there were glimmers of hope as Robin Swann says the pandemic’s early spread is might not be tuning out as bad as thought.
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The lockdown measures currently in place in Northern Ireland have been extended for an additional three weeks, First Minister Arlene Foster confirmed today.
Mrs. Foster confirmed the Northern Ireland Executive met on Wednesday and explained they had agreed the measures must remain in place for three more weeks at the very least. The First Minister described the decision to extend the lockdown as “right and proper” while deputy First Minister, Michelle O’Neill insisted now was the time to “dig in”.
The announcement came on a day when the number of people in Northern Ireland to die after testing positive for COVID-19 increased by six to 140.
Yesterday also saw the number of people to test positive for COVID-19 in Northern Ireland move past the 2,000 milestone to 2,088.
Business leaders in Northern Ireland have published a 10-point plan to mitigate the impact of the “fastest and deepest” economic decline ever experienced due to the coronavirus shutdown.
The strategy was published on Wednesday after Ulster Bank chief economist Richard Ramsey said the bank’s monthly business survey for March recorded the “steepest ever fall in activity”.
The UK death toll rose by 761 in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of COVID-19 related deaths to 12,868. There have now been 98,476 confirmed cases of the disease in the UK.
Orange Order issues appeal for bandsmen and women to add musical instruments to the weekly ‘Clap for Our Carers’
The Orange Order is appealing to bandsmen and women across Northern Ireland to add their own musical skills to the weekly appreciation of the NHS.
Coronavirus death toll will include care homes
Health Minister Robin Swann welcomed a commitment to publish statistics on deaths and suspected deaths in care homes related to Covid-19
Help available for those suffering domestic abuse during lockdown, says justice minister
Naomi Long urged those needing help to turn to helplines which are manned 24 hours a day
Trump’s move to stop funding to WHO branded ‘a crime against humanity’
Microsoft founder Bill Gates called Trump’s decision “as dangerous as it sounds”
Blood donors going extra mile during Covid-19 pandemic
Giving blood is considered an ‘essential journey’ under government guidelines which have restricted travel
Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil agree framework on forming government
The move effectively ends 98 years of fierce rivalry between the two Civil War parties
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