HEALTH officials have called on the public to "take all the precautions they can" as Northern Ireland prepares to enter tougher lock-down measures.
While business leaders and owners have reacted angrily to a move by the Stormont Executive to impose a further two weeks of measures beginning next Friday, health experts said it is the right thing to do if the number of cases of Covid-19 are to be brought under control.
Dr Tom Black, chair of British Medical Association's Northern Ireland Council, said: "The Executive has had to announce further restrictions tonight because infection rates are still too high, GP practices are still exceptionally busy and our hospitals are either at or above capacity.
"It is therefore imperative that the Executive does all it can to support our health service in the run up to Christmas and beyond and that means acting quickly and decisively on the medical and scientific advice presented to them," he said.
"As we have seen, failure to do just that in recent weeks has undermined the hard work and selfless dedication of frontline health and social care staff and put our health service in a precarious position heading into winter."
Dr Black said it was now "vitally important that the public continues to play their part and take all the precautions they can.
"That means socially distancing, wearing a mask, and washing hands regularly."
Meanwhile, public health expert, Professor Gabriel Scally, who has previously issued warnings about the dangers of easing restrictions at Christmas, said the management of the whole pandemic in Northern Ireland had been "dreadful".
Professor Scally, who is President of the epidemiology and public health section at the Royal Society of Medicine, said there was "no logical explanation" for Stormont to announce the reopening of businesses last week only to close them again next week.
"It all comes back to handling the virus badly and missing the opportunities to do something about it".
