Public transport returns to full capacity
Use of public transport is not expected to reach peak levels for some time despite a return to 100 per cent capacity from today, the chief executive of the National Transport Authority (NTA) said.
Anne Graham told RTÉ radio’s Morning Ireland that levels at present were 55 per cent of 2019 pre-pandemic figures and that numbers were expected to build week-on-week as people return to work.
However, she did acknowledge crowding at present during peak travel times and advised anyone who was nervous to consider travelling off-peak if they could.
Ventilation on buses and trains was good, Ms Graham said, with windows on some buses “restrained open”. As buses stopped regularly this meant a good change in air quality, she added.
Return to offices
Workers will have to honour their contracts if an employer asks them to return to the office later this month, according to Tánaiste Leo Varadkar.
Mr Varadkar said he did not think it was “reasonable” that people would be exempt from returning to the workplace because they did not feel comfortable amid the pandemic.
He added that anyone uncomfortable with returning will have little option legally.
Workers are due to return to offices on a phased basis from September 20th under the Government’s new roadmap out of Covid-19 restrictions, unveiled on Tuesday evening.
Tens of thousands of people have been working from home throughout the pandemic.
All-Ireland final capacity
It is unlikely there will be 60,000 people at Croke Park for the All-Ireland football final on Saturday, September 11th, the Minister for Health has said.
“What we had was agreement on 50 per cent capacity, so about 40,000 people, maybe vaccinated or unvaccinated,” Stephen Donnelly told RTÉ radio’s Morning Ireland.
Restrictions on organised outdoor events and mass gatherings are to ease from September 6th, with events for vaccinated people at 75 per cent capacity permitted outdoors.
The Minister said that his view was that 60,000 people fully vaccinated was “probably a lower risk” than the 40,000 people to be permitted at the final as a Government pilot event.
“Remember 90 per cent of the population is already vaccinated so if you had an adult population at Croke Park regardless, the vast, vast majority of people in there are fully vaccinated anyway,” he said.
Nphet projections warn of 5,000 cases per day
Up to 5,000 new Covid-19 cases could be recorded per day this month under a “central” scenario modelled by the National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet).
The Irish Times reports that under central scenarios as the country reopens, 3,000 to 5,000 cases per day will be seen, bringing 750 to 1,300 hospitalisations and 150 to 250 people needing critical care.
Under an “optimistic” scenario, modelling shows 2,500 to 3,000 cases per day next month, and peaks of between 500 to 700 in hospital and 80 to 130 needing intensive care.
In a letter to the Minister for Health containing the modelling, chief medical officer (CMO) Dr Tony Holohan wrote the Delta variant “is significantly more transmissible and less susceptible to vaccines than previous variants”.
He said there is uncertainty about the length of immunity, the long-term consequences of infection, and that Covid would be a global challenge for some time to come.
Ireland takes over presidency of UN Security Council
Ireland today takes on the role of President of the United Nations (UN) Security Council.
The presidency is rotated each month, and will see Ireland preside over meetings and manage council agendas for September.
It is the only time Ireland will hold the presidency during its two-year term on the Security Council from 2021 to 2022.
Unemployment falls to pandemic low of 12.4%
The unemployment rate fell to a pandemic low of 12.4 per cent in August, according to the latest figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO).
The Covid-19 adjusted unemployment rate fell from 13.5 per cent in July, with the figures an estimate based on the Live Register and Covid-19 related claims.
The main unemployment rate fell to 6.4 per cent in August on a seasonally-adjusted basis, from 6.5 per cent in July, and 7.1 per cent twelve months ago.
CSO statistician John Mullane said the Covid-19 crisis “continued to have a significant impact on the labour market in Ireland in August 2021.”
“While the standard measure of monthly unemployment was 6.4 per cent in August 2021, the Covid-19 adjusted measure of unemployment indicates a rate as high as 12.4 per cent if all claimants of the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) were classified as unemployed,” he said.
Paul Mulvaney appointed as group managing director at Irish Times
ESB executive Paul Mulvaney has been appointed as group managing director of The Irish Times DAC by the board of the company.
He will succeed Liam Kavanagh, who is retiring from the role after more than 20 years at the media group, where he served as managing director for the last 11 years.
The Group's publications include The Irish Times, The Irish Examiner, Breakingnews.ie, and several regional titles along with shareholdings in regional radio stations. It also owns myhome.ie and recruitireland.com.
Mr Mulvaney is a member of the ESB executive management team and executive director, customer delivery ESB Networks.
Having joined the company in 1985, he has held a number of senior management roles, including executive director – innovation, programme manager of corporate change, managing director of ESB’s ecars and head of distribution and customer service.
