Valladolid to have Spain’s largest biomass-fed heating network
The promise is that it will save between 30% and 50% on users’ energy bills
The bill has narrowly passed through the lower house of parliament with the opposition labelling the plan as unworkable and discriminatory
The Irish government managed on Wednesday to push through Dáil (the lower house of parliament) its controversial bill which allows access to indoor dining only to those who have been fully vaccinated, or recovered from COVID-19, with some exceptions for children and staff.
After a heated debate, the Health Amendment №2 Bill was passed by a narrow margin of 74 to 68 votes and will now go to Seanad (the upper house) for final approval.
The resumption of indoor restaurant and bar services, initially scheduled for 5 July, has been delayed due to the Delta variant gaining the upper hand in the UK, among other countries, and models predicting a devastating impact on public health if Ireland is to lower its guard. Therefore, NPHET has recommended a cautious approach with indoor dining reserved for those who are fully vaccinated or reconvalescent. Over 2 million people in Ireland are fully protected by vaccination to this date.
Following consultations with hospitality industry representatives and unions, the government has decided on the following measures:
Social distancing measures will remain in place, especially in hotels, where fully vaccinated and recovered non-residents are likely to be mixing with vaccinated and unvaccinated residents and staff.
During the debate, all opposition deputies lambasted the new indoor dining measures as discriminatory and unenforceable, and even some government backbenchers confided concerns about the legislation’s constitutionality. Minister for Health Stephen Donnely defended the plan, saying that the entire EU Digital Covid Certificate is based on vaccination status and Ireland has already accepted this principle.
Striking a conciliatory note, Tánaiste (Deputy PM) Leo Varadkar acknowledged that the plan is “imperfect”, but still a better “middle, safe path” between the other two options of either reopening indoor hospitality with no strings attached or keeping it closed until herd immunity is achieved nationwide.
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The promise is that it will save between 30% and 50% on users’ energy bills
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