Recovery will be painfully slow into a different world

World of Politics with Harry McGee – harrymcgee@gmail.com

Where will it end? The simple answer is nobody really knows. It’s like we’re wearing blindfolds in a darkened room looking for a door…with no handle. The Government has set out a road map for re-opening of the economy. It involves a gradual phasing-in of business activity. For those where they can get away with people not being in close proximity to each other it won’t be too bad. But for other sectors it’s going to be a nightmare.

Even when pubs, restaurants, hotels and airlines operate they will be a shadow of themselves.

Take airlines. How many seats on each airplane will have to be cordoned off? How are they going to manage herding people on and off the planes? How will they manage queues in airport terminal buildings? Will everybody’s temperature have to be taken? Will everybody be required to wear face masks? Will airlines still be flying to as many destinations? Will air fares face big hikes as fewer people fly and planes carry fewer people?

You can repeat that same exercise for each sector.

The pandemic has seen people adapt by creating new micro environments for exercise and discovery within their own 2km and 5km zones.

It’s okay having your home for an office if you live in a nice semi-d with a spare bedroom – but for poorer workers who share tiny cramped apartments or are living in bedsits, or who have to look after kids who don’t have access to laptops or tablets, it becomes a much more difficult proposition.

And if you work in a factory or in a face-fronting business it’s not going to be so easy. What are hairdressers and barbers going to do, or those who run small shops, or dentists, or physiotherapists?

Even with face masks, don’t count on getting your bouffant perm put into shape anytime soon (unless you are going over to the dark side and paying more for a sneaky cut).

Full contact sport will not resume until the autumn (that’s rugby and boxing). But even other team sports like the GAA won’t be coming back in any familiar guise anytime soon.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

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