The Secretary General at the Department of Health, Jim Breslin, is expected to warn that the acute phase of the coronavirus crisis could last for years, when he appears before the Dáil special committee on Covid-19.

The Secretary General at the Department of Health, Jim Breslin, is expected to warn that the acute phase of the coronavirus crisis could last for years, when he appears before the Dáil special committee on Covid-19 later this morning.
Mr Breslin will give his evidence in the first public session of this new Dáil committee at eleven o’clock this morning.
His opening statement, which has been seen by RTÉ News, notes “the definite progress in getting virus levels back down through stringent public health restrictions” without which he states Ireland could have had 39,000 deaths by now.
The Secretary General observes that this progress allows “calculated risks in extending the range of activities it is permitted to undertake.” 
However, in a stark analysis he warns: “This is not a 1,2 or even a 3-day storm, after which we move to the recovery phase. The acute phase of this crisis will definitely be measured in months and most probably in years, rather than days.” 
And he states bluntly: “The threat from the virus will be a reality for the foreseeable future.” 
Other witnesses who are due to give evidence today include the Chief Medical Officer, Dr Tony Holohan and the HSE Chief Executive, Paul Reid.
It’s expected all three men will be questioned about a letter which was released last week, but drafted in April, and which was described by the Labour leader Alan Kelly as “explosive.”
In it, Mr Reid writes to Mr Breslin about concerns he had about how the National Public Health Emergency Team, chaired by Dr Holohan, gave a commitment to increase Covid-19 testing to 100,000 people a week.
In his opening statement, also seen by RTÉ News, Mr Reid describes Covid-19 as “the worst pandemic in living memory”, adding the HSE has worked tirelessly to build defences to protect the public. 
It had been expected that representatives of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions and the Health and Safety Authority would also attend – and representatives from both organisations submitted statements to the Covid-19 committee.
However, in a revised note sent out last night to Committee members, it was stated that there was “little scope” to proceed with the original plan of joint sessions.
Instead, the Chief Medical Officer and the Secretary General of the Department of Health are due to participate in the first session at eleven o’clock; while the HSE Director General will participate in a second session at two o’clock. 
At last evening’s Department of Health press briefing, the Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan had warned the precise arrangements of the Covid-19 committee hearing would “have to comply with the public health advice as will any public meeting.”
He said: “Given the positions and the roles that we hold, we have to be seen to uphold our own public health advice.” 
Additional reporting – Barry Lenihan