DUBLIN: Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe has set aside money in the new budget ahead of the third wave of COVID-19.
As the country and the world go through the second wave, Tánaiste Leo Varadkar has said that the reserves will benefit Ireland’s health care.
Mr. Leo Varadkar has said that, €5.4 billion has been set aside for the contingency fund to deal with the third wave of COVID-19. He also said, a decision would be taken on Friday on whether the country should move to level 4 or lock down.
Leo Varadkar said the possibility of a third wave of COVID-19 forced the government to allocate additional funds in the budget. The government has set aside €2.1 billion in contingency funding for next year in the budget.
Against the backdrop of COVID-19 and Brexit, €3.4 million was set aside in the recovery fund. Varadkar said the reserve was due to the unpredictability of the future due to COVID-19.
“We don’t know when the second wave will end, it will end. We don’t know if there’ll be a third wave and when it will start, how long it might go on for.” We must beware of this uncertainty, – said Mr. Varadkar.
The government needs to look into whether the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP), Wage Subsidy Scheme and the new Covid Restrictions Support Scheme (CRSS) will be extended beyond March, Mr. Varadkar said.