Coronavirus: Nails & beauty businesses to reopen in step 3 of NI roadmap
By Chloe Randall | 02 March 2021 | Movers & Shakers, News
The Northern Ireland Executive has announced a five-step plan for taking the country out of lockdown restrictions, with close contact services set to resume in step three of the retail pathway.
No indicative dates have been included in the path and instead, nine pathways have been identified with each of them having different steps for the easing of restrictions, based on Northern Ireland’s society and economy.
These include retail; hospitality; education and young people; work; culture, heritage and entertainment; sports and leisure; travel and tourism; worship and ceremonies; home and community.
Deputy First Minister Michelle O’Neill said: “We recognise that everyone will be looking for certainty but we do not want to set potentially unachievable dates that will only disappoint.”
Under the retail pathway, it states the following:
- Step 3- Close contact services can resume with mitigations
- Step 4- All close contact services will be allowed to open without appointments, with remaining mitigations
- Step 5- All close contact services open with reduced mitigations
“Each week, departments will meet as a collective to discuss the available information and to proactively consider which next steps can be proposed to the executive,” the Deputy First Minister added.
“After each step we take, we will pause and reflect, look at the data and the impacts, engage with key sectors and enable them to reopen only if it is the right thing to do.”
The phases are set to be reviewed every four weeks, with the first Comprehensive Formal Review being held on 16 March and the subsequent dates being 15 April, 13 May and 10 June.
The factors for easing the lockdown include the infection rate of the virus, known as the R number, the number of people in hospital, vaccine rollout and progress in testing and tracing positive cases.
The current regulations are in place until 1 April 2021 and they will be reviewed on 18 March 2021.
For the current restrictions in Northern Ireland, click here