Northern Ireland could end up with one of the worst records in the world in tackling coronavirus, a leading public health expert has said.
Dr Gabriel Scally, visiting professor of public health at both the University of the West of England and the University of Bristol, has called for an all-island plan to tackle the high number of Covid-19 cases occurring on both sides of the Border.
He told the BBC’s Talkback programme: “Northern Ireland is going to end up as one of the worst cases in the world unless someone gets a grip.”
Dr Scally, who was born and brought up in Belfast, has previously called for an emergency summit of Dublin and Stormont ministers and is a critic of the lack of cross-Border co-ordination to control the pandemic.
A total of 46,831 people have tested positive for Covid-19 in Northern Ireland since the pandemic began.
Dr Scally said: “Show me the strategy and plan for dealing with this.
“I am astounded, I have never seen a worse situation.
“There is no plan, there is no strategy, there is no transparency.
“No one can say that the public health measures are working because we are not given any data.”
