In a time of unprecedented threat, we need calm heads, and an ability to change our minds.

I do not think I need to overly emphasise how chaotic of a start to the year 2021 has been. From spiralling Covid-19 cases both sides of the border caused by a strain that came from Britain, the effects of Brexit, vaccinations programmes some of which have been thrown in the dark by pharmaceutical companies promising the world and the sun, any mention of an ‘All-Island Approach’ and not to forget, the heavy daily debates which surround all of the above.

And the effects of all of this is made all the worse by the helplessness feeling of being in lockdown as these debates rage on.

We expect a lot from our public representatives, no more so than in the unprecedented times we find ourselves in. We hold them to account at all corners of their lives but given the current tense climate of their work, we forget they are indeed humans just like the rest of us and just like the rest of us, they make mistakes. There is no silver bullet for any of the topics I have mentioned, there is no perfect solution.

What we laid witness to last week was politicians across Europe feeling the heat of the current climate and making rash decisions and comments. From Taoiseach Micheál Martin claiming Northern Ireland was not testing for new strains of Covid-19 and the subsequent rebuttal of such claims from Arlene Foster, Ian Paisley Jr claiming on Claire Byrne Live it was unacceptable that Northern Ireland could be closed off from their nation’s capital in response to a question around an all-island approach and then of course last week’s grand finale in which the EU so nearly triggered Article 16 of the Northern Ireland protocol.

But it was an article by Daniel McConnell, political editor of the Irish Examiner, in the aftermath of all these events which really piqued my interest. The article was about how politicians kept changing their tune at an alarming rate. Essentially politicians saying one thing this week and another thing next week. I disagreed with the sentiment of the piece quite strongly actually. I believe it is vital we normalise changing our opinions when new information or ideas and their practicalities comes to light. That same rule must apply to politicians, especially in the context of fighting Covid-19. People make out it is political treason to have an idea or opinion and then change your mind, it’s not.

So many Irish politicians both in Government and out kept repeating the same line last week, “we’ve done things, we thought we’d never do”, yes we have and we are likely to do far more things that would have been inconceivable 12 months ago. It is crucial that politicians and the public alike do not become too entrenched in how they see best to fight Covid-19, on any front. Countries have learnt from their respective Covid-19 policies, be it a herd-immunity strategy, zero-covid strategy or living with Covid strategy. They’ve changed their policies and models as time has gone on and they have gone on to facilitate new learnings. The changes countries have made have saved hundreds of thousands of lives to date.

Take the EU considering triggering Article 16 as an example. How many times in politics have you seen a political party suggest a terrible idea but refuse to back down as to not be seen to lose face? Realising a mistake has been made and rectifying it before any real damage is done, that has to be a key mechanism of politics for the sake of us all. Thankfully the EU did not go ahead with its plan last Friday and we can all breathe a sigh of relieve, for now.

What Friday showed though, was how politics is sitting on a delicate knife edge within the current climate. When the public’s mood across Europe is wearing thin because of constant lockdowns, when pharmaceutical companies producing Covid-19 vaccines are throwing vaccination programme’s into utter disarray, it in these times where calm heads must be kept. Strip back all the emotion from the debate, keep it strictly business with only the end goal in sight. Pandemic stress and anger is evident amongst us all but losing our composure in the final hour with the end on the horizon could spell catastrophe. So, let’s take a step back, keep our heads calm, our minds open and see ourselves through the final few hurdles.

 

“Arlene Foster MLA, DUP”“Dáil Éireann – Election of Taoiseach – 27 June 2020”“File:Ursula von der Leyen (49468709252).jpg”“File:Official portrait of Ian Paisley MP crop 2.jpg” are licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0

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