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kilkennyobserver.ie
The Kilkenny Observer Friday 17 September 2021
News
ACCORDING to a new poll, one in five people in Ireland have distanced themselves from family or friends due to a disagreement about the Covid-19 pandemic. An opinion poll carried out for thejournal.ie by Red C Research found 39% of people had disagreements with friends or family about how to behave during the pandemic and 39% had disagreements about Covid-19 vaccines. Those in younger age groups were more likely to have had a disagreement about the pandemic or Covid-19 vaccines. More than half of those aged 18-24 fell out with family or friends about how to behave during the pandemic and 30% of people in this group have distanced themselves from family or friends as a result. Almost half of those aged 3544 said they had argued with a family member or friend about Covid vaccines. Just 10% of those aged over 65 have distanced themselves from family or friends due to disagreements about the pandemic. There was little difference
Loved ones split over virus and vaccine between male and female responses, with 20% of both males and females who were
surveyed stating that they had distanced themselves from a loved one.
Women were slightly more likely to have had a disagreement about Covid vaccines
Under-12s worst affected since returning to school CHILDREN between the ages of five and 12 have been the most affected by Covid-19 since their return to schools. During the first week back to school, there were 3,292 cases among children up to the age of 18, according to new data released by the HPSC (Health Protection Surveillance Centre). Of these, 1,461 cases were in the five- to 12-year-olds group, compared to 1,247 cases in the 13- to 18-year-old group and 644 in those aged up to four. At the start of September, the HSE said nearly 12,000 schoolchildren were out of class because they were a close contact of someone with Covid-19, A new plan sets out steps to end mass testing for Covid, starting with children It comes as an infectious disease specialist said she fears most children under 12 in Ireland will contract Covid-19 by early next year if more isn’t done to make schools safer. Prof Cliona Ni Cheallaigh, a consultant in St James’s Hospital, also said the country is letting the disease “rip through primary schools”. “That said, we’ve got Delta, everybody under 12 is not vaccinated, and they’re in classrooms with no masks and there hasn’t really been
with a friend or family member. This month a more significant period of easing restrictions
began, with the return of live music and larger indoor events – albeit with capacity limits in place and a requirement to show proof of immunity in indoor settings. The next significant date for the easing of restrictions is September 20, when organised indoor group activities such as sports and dance classes can resume. This date will also signal the return to workplaces on a phased and staggered basis. According to the latest Amárach public opinion survey, carried out in conjunction with the Department of Health and published last week, 61% of people believe the reaction of the government to the pandemic is appropriate, while 22% believe it is insufficient and 17% believe it is too extreme. One third of people surveyed said they think Ireland is trying to return to normal too quickly, with 45% stating they thought easing was moving at about the right pace and 23% said the return to normal was moving too slowly. From October 22 onwards, the majority of remaining Covid restrictions will be lifted including the requirements for physical distancing and wearing masks in indoor private settings.
Vaccine booster jabs ‘not right’, says WHO chief THE head of the World Health Organisation (WHO) is once again calling for wealthy countries to postpone the rollout of Covid-19 vaccine boosters. Instead, Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a press briefing earlier this week that richer nations should distribute extra doses to lowincome countries facing vaccine shortages, especially those in Africa where less than 3.7% of people are fully vaccinated. It is the third time Tedros has spoken against vaccine booster shots being distributed by wealthy nations, calling for a pause on distribution of the
third shots through the end of September and then through the end of the year. In Africa, vaccinations against the virus are low because many poorer nations on the continent do not have enough doses or the infrastructure necessary to put together a massive operation the way many wealthier nations have. African countries have fallen way behind the global vaccine pace. Chad is among the worst, with less than half-of-a-percent of residents having received at least one shot of a vaccine. Less than 6% of Africans have gotten at least one shot overall.
400 children confirmed after restrictions lifted
the type of work in ventilation done that would make the schools safer,” she told RTÉ Radio earlier this week. “So if I were a betting woman, I would probably be betting that most kids in Ireland
under 12 will be getting Covid before the spring, the way we’re going on now.” Her view was not shared by HSE chief Paul Reid. “If you look at the cases that we have had, it’s a much smaller per-
centage than total children in school,” he said on RTÉ Radio One’s This Week He added that what is happening in schools at the moment is what the HSE would have projected.
FOR the first time in living memory, Kilkenny GAA allowed confirmations to go ahead in the county grounds when 400 primary school children received the sacrament last Thursday. The hour-long ceremony was held at Nowlan Park, following the lifting of rigid Covid-19 restrictions. Apostolic Administrator and Bishop of Ossory Denis Nulty and GAA officials had been working on the logistics and organisation of holding the en masse confirmations for several months.
Plans to hold the ceremony on the pitch had to be moved to several of the stands in the grounds at the last minute due to the threat of rain, but that did not dampen the enthusiasm. Up to 2,500 excited children and adults gathered at the grounds from 5.30pm. Bishop Denis Nulty led proceedings from the pitch as the scoreboard told the story of the Saints winning out over the Sinners. Photo special, pages 24-27
