The impact of the pandemic on the public finances is deepening as the crisis enters its second year, with exchequer returns published by the Government on Tuesday showing a widening gap between spending and tax receipts. The main draw on the public purse was spending on the Government’s Employment Wage Subsidy Scheme (EWSS) and the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP). The National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet) reported 359 new confirmed cases of the disease, along with a further 14 deaths of Covid-19 patients. Health serviceAnd in the health service, the impact of the vaccination programme is being felt with a dramatic fall in infections among staff. Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly told an Oireachtas committee that the HSE was seeing a 95 per cent reduction in the Covid-19 infection rate of hospital staff.

Source: The Irish Times March 03, 2021 03:00 UTC