An historic meeting of Dáil Éireann is taking place this afternoon, in which extraordinary legislation will be passed to protect Ireland from COVID-19.
Only a third of the 160 TDs will meet in the Dáil chambers today, to allow for appropriate social distancing.
Clare TDs say they are ready to work together to support the country through this, as Clare FM’s Ben Sweeney reports.
There are now 366 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the Republic of Ireland, a number which will grow rapidly over the coming weeks.
Three people on the island of Ireland have died as a result of the virus, including a first death in Northern Ireland that was confirmed today
Along with the health impact, the pandemic is having a severe economic impact, and emergency legislation that will be passed in the Dáil this afternoon aims to address that.
Normally legislation this important would take weeks to debate and pass – but it’s being pushed through all stages in just three hours this afternoon.
These new laws would give the government serious powers to detain people who have the coronavirus but refuse to self-isolate.
It gives the government the ability to lock down certain regions, to restrict travel and order people to maintain in their homes.
It also gives legal footing for the financial supports being given to businesses or people who’ve lost work as a result of the crisis.
The cabinet will meet to be given an update on the situation and a number of briefings are expected from the government later.
Clare’s Fine Gael TD Joe Carey says these are extraordinary times that require extraordinary measures.
A number of amendments are being pushed by opposition parties.
Labour wants a guaranteed sunset clause for these emergency powers to end in six months time.
At the moment they are due to end on May 9th but can be extended by the government.
Clare’s Sinn Féin TD Violet-Anne Wynne says they’re ready to work together to ensure that the health and financial well-being of everyone is protected as best as it can be.
