THE PAST week has been a worrying time for governments struggling to deal with the Coronavirus pandemic.
Many jurisdictions in different parts of the world have reported spikes in the numbers of people presenting with the virus. The optimists will hope that the rising numbers of positive test results are because more testing is taking place.
But if the increase is simply down to the fact that governments have been attempting to get societys back to a more normal way of living that would be very concerning.
At the weekend Professor Chris Witty, one of the advisers to Boris Johnson, said that it was possible that the limit of steps which could be taken to moderate restrictions had been reached and that more easing might require a trade-off where something else would be restricted.
And yesterday the Irish health minister said that random testing was being introduced at airports in an attempt to intercept carriers of the virus.
Stephen Donnelly said the step was being taken because of spikes being experienced in different parts of the world.
"The international situation is becoming more volatile," said Mr Donnelly, "we're looking at what has been happening in the United States and Latin America and even closer to home – Spain, Germany, France and parts of England and Australia.
"We're taking a cautious approach and we're continuing to take a cautious approach," he said.
There is no doubt that the hospitality sector has been hit all over the world. It is entirely possible that the sector will face further bad news in the coming weeks unless the numbers begin to recede again.
Public houses were due to be allowed to reopen in the Republic from next week. The health minister refused to comment on whether that move would now proceed stating that the government would wait for advice before making a decision.
One of the areas many governments are very keen to see return to as close to normal as possible is education. However the ambition to see children back in the classrooms rather than being schooled at home is the cause of much concern and disagreement.
The next few weeks could be vital as the battle against the virus continues. If the numbers of infected peoplee continues to go up it could significantly change the plans of governments here and in Britain.
