THE ACTING GOVERNMENT has announced a €3 billion package to be spent tackling the spread of Covid-19.
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has warned that the crisis "could go on well into next year" and that it could become "not like anything in living memory."
He said: "The virus can't be stopped but it can be slowed and the impact on it can be reduced.
"We have no treatment, no vaccine and no immunity so this is going to be a society response as it is going to be a medical one. As a consequence of that, all necessary resources will be mobilised.
"We will stay in the contagion phase as long as possible but we will move to the delay phase and the mitigation phase in the weeks ahead."
The €3bn emergency fund is designed to slow the spread of coronavirus while providing safety and insurance for workers and businesses across the country.
It will be spent in three ways:
- €2.4bn for a package of reforms for workers impacted by coronavirus to cover for sick pay, illness benefit and supplementary benefit;
- €435m to the HSE for increased health spending;
- €200m in liquidity funding for businesses.
The money was initially set aside by the government to deal with the effects of a no-deal Brexit, but fate has presented another national threat instead.
Mr Varadkar said he would soon be speaking with other EU leaders about preventative measures and how the bloc can act as one, including on flight restrictions from some countries.
The news comes just a day after the entirety of Italy was placed on lockdown, restricting the movements of more than 60 million citizens, following a recent spike in Covid-19-related deaths.
On Monday, both Dublin and Cork city cancelled their St. Patrick's Day parades after significant pressure from health experts to avoid mass-gatherings.
