NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / World

Covid-19 coronavirus: Ireland focuses on Christmas as it enters new lockdown

By Peter Morrison, Danica Kirka
Other·
21 Oct, 2020 07:18 PM5 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Paul Cadden, owner of the Saba restaurant group, poses for a photograph in his restaurant in Dublin, Ireland. Photo / AP

Paul Cadden, owner of the Saba restaurant group, poses for a photograph in his restaurant in Dublin, Ireland. Photo / AP

Ireland is already focused on Christmas. It's a major national priority.

Unless the country can get the Covid-19 pandemic under control, there won't be much Christmas cheer this year in Galway, Cork or Dublin.

With infections on the rise, the Government has imposed a tough new lockdown that begins today, shutting down non-essential shops, limiting restaurants to takeaways and ordering people to stay within 5km of their homes for the next six weeks.

The restrictions are among the toughest in Europe, and Prime Minister Micheal Martin said he imposed them in part to ensure Ireland can celebrate Christmas "in a meaningful way."

That message has won the support of many business owners, even in the hard-hit hospitality industry which was still recovering from an earlier lockdown that slashed revenue and triggered layoffs in the northern spring.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Australia may have recorded first case of Covid-19 reinfection https://t.co/0c3MJPk5tN

— Guardian news (@guardiannews) October 21, 2020

Paul Cadden, owner of the Saba Restaurant Group, will have to lay off 20 people, but will do takeaways, hampers, anything necessary, to get by until lockdown ends. He hopes the new restrictions will bring the virus under control in time for the all-important holiday season.

"Nobody wants to be closed, but for the greater good, you know," Cadden told AP. "It's all to play for Christmas. And if everybody takes it seriously and, you know, we all lock down and do what we're told, hopefully we can get a run into the December period."

Ireland has had little success in slowing the spread of Covid-19 in recent weeks, even as it has slowly ratcheted up restrictions on social and business interactions. The infection rate stood at 279 cases per 100,000 people in the 14 days by yesterday, compared with 96 per 100,000 in the period to September 30.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

With a population of about five million, Ireland has recorded 1865 deaths related to Covid-19.

Long Covid: Who is more likely to get it? https://t.co/80tiYCyptz

— BBC News (UK) (@BBCNews) October 21, 2020

In announcing that he was moving the entire country into the highest level of restrictions in the Government's five-tier strategy, Martin appealed for optimism at a time many have experienced loss.

"The days are getting shorter and colder, but I ask you to remember this: Even as the winter comes in, there is hope and there is light," he told the nation. "It won't be the same Christmas that we've enjoyed in years past, but if we all pull together and follow the spirit of these new rules, it will be a very special time and will give us all some respite from the hardship of the last seven months."

But the measure also makes economic sense to some business owners because it has the potential to save the Christmas season.

Cadden, a past president of the Restaurants Association of Ireland, said that between corporate events and family gatherings, Christmas can account for 40 per cent of the annual revenue for some establishments.

“Three causes have bewildered us in a maze of madness and error. These are death, toil, and ignorance of the future.” @page88 on crowds in an era of social distancing https://t.co/QyY0bWCKsS From @1843mag

— The Economist (@TheEconomist) October 21, 2020

Sean Collender, co-owner of the Kinara chain of Pakistani restaurants, supports the new measures but says the Government needs a long-term strategy to prevent a series of lockdowns and re-openings that will be hard on workers and force some businesses to close permanently.

"The Government need to come up with a plan, because if we're just shutting to reopen to shut to reopen to shut we have a major problem ahead for all our businesses," he said.

Even those in retail, who will lose key shopping days before the holiday, are hopeful — although they wish the lockdown had come earlier.

All 62 residents of a Kansas nursing home have tested positive for the coronavirus, and 10 have died, health officials said. https://t.co/tvzWQwRAuT

— All In with Chris Hayes (@allinwithchris) October 21, 2020

Jennie Flynn, owner of the Designist gift and homeware shop in Dublin, is hoping that the shift toward online shopping will help save her Christmas season. Traditionally, about 80 per cent of her business comes from in-store sales this time of year, but she'll be totally reliant on the internet until her shop is allowed to reopen.

"Irish people are very behind this, behind making the best of the situation," she said. "That makes me feel able to keep going."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Business owners seem to be almost willing the lockdown to work because they, like everyone in Ireland, need a break from the loneliness, suffering and death.

"We all want Christmas to happen. We all want time with our families. We all need hugs," Cadden said "And we all need to be able to look forward to sitting around a restaurant table with our friends, sharing great food, having a laugh and saying, 'Wow, got through that.'"

- AP

Save

    Share this article

Latest from World

World

Russia launches 400 drones, missile in latest Ukraine assault

World

US agents seize $16m in crypto tied to Sinaloa cartel in major busts

World

LA protests: Pentagon pulls back half of guard troops


Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from World

Russia launches 400 drones, missile in latest Ukraine assault
World

Russia launches 400 drones, missile in latest Ukraine assault

The attacks left one woman dead and more than two dozen people wounded.

16 Jul 09:28 AM
US agents seize $16m in crypto tied to Sinaloa cartel in major busts
World

US agents seize $16m in crypto tied to Sinaloa cartel in major busts

16 Jul 08:33 AM
LA protests: Pentagon pulls back half of guard troops
World

LA protests: Pentagon pulls back half of guard troops

16 Jul 08:24 AM


Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

06 Jul 09:47 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP