COVID-19: What are the rules?

With the Prime Minister extending the lock-down laws for another four weeks we all need to be clear about what is allowed and what is not allowed. Here's a list of things you CAN and CANNOT do.

1. Obtaining food or other goods and services. This includes ordering and picking up take-away foods, going to the hairdressers or buying new work clothes.  
2. Travelling for the purposes of work or education if the person cannot do it at home. This includes those who are working within essential businesses such as: builders, retail staff, doctors, nurses etc. This also includes your children attending school if they are unable to continue their education from home.
3. Exercise. This means that you can exercise outside. For example taking a walk around the block is okay. You can do this with the persons you live with, but, if you’re training with a friend, you, must keep it to a minimum of two people, yourself and your friend.
4. Medical or caring reasons i.e. to attend doctor’s appointments or to help your elderly parents get to and from their medical appointments or taking their grocery shopping to them. 
5. Avoid injury or illness or escape a risk of harm i.e. if you’re a victim of domestic violence.
6. Dealing with emergencies or on compassionate grounds.
7. Attend a wedding (limited to a total of 5 people) or funeral (limited to a total of 10 people, excluding the person/s necessary to conduct the funeral e.g. funeral director).
8. Moving to a new residence, or between different places of residence (a holiday is not an acceptable reason).
9. Donating blood or plasma.
10. Undertaking legal obligations i.e. attending your court dates where it is necessary you attend. 
11. Access social services, employment services, services provided to victims i.e. domestic violence services, and mental health services. 
12. Continue existing arrangements for access to, and contact between, parents and children for children who do not live in the same household as their parents or one of their parents.
13. If you are a priest, minister of religion or member of a religious order, go to a place of worship or to provide pastoral care.
14. If you do volunteer work, you can leave your house to engage in these activities i.e. provide food to the homeless.

1. Gatherings of members of the same household, and
2. Gatherings essential for work or education.

You still cannot: 

1. Visit family or friends that live outside of your house, unless of course you’re caring for those persons as outlined above;
2. Go for scenic drives;
3. Teach your children how to drive;
4. Travel for a holiday;
5. You cannot exercise with more than two people who are not living in the same house hold as you;
6. You cannot attend shopping centers, hairdresser’s or take away restaurant’s with more than two persons, unless these persons are from the same household.
7. You cannot do anything that does not fall within the exceptions listed above. 
8. The two person rule does not apply to people gatherings at public transport stops, train stations or platforms. However, remember that the social distancing rule still applies.