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Taoiseach Micheál Martin will address the nation tonight to announce further restrictions on personal liberties under a return to the Level 5 lockdown.
Cabinet will approve a change to the full Level 5 restrictions this afternoon, thus closing retail stores, gyms and ending home visits.
The ministers will meet for the second time in three days to consider restrictions amid widespread concern over a significant increase in confirmed Covid-19 cases in the state.
While further restrictions are inevitable, chief ministers have said keeping the country’s schools open during the New Year is a priority.
Last night’s figure of 1,546 new Covid-19 cases was the highest daily number on record during the nine months of the pandemic.
Today’s meeting was called by Micheál Martin after public health officials confirmed what they called an “exponential” increase in the number of cases.
Sources who spoke to the Irish Examiner have said the cabinet is expected to:
- Introduce all level 5 restrictions, including the closure of non-essential retailers
- Trips will again be limited to a 5 km radius from their homes.
- The move to level 5 will also end home visitation before New Years Eve.
Speaking before the cabinet, Public Spending Minister Michael McGrath said that the situation with the coronavirus is “deteriorating quite rapidly.”
The government must consider today whether to remove some or all of the current modifications to Level 5, he said.
Mr. McGrath said we are at a point where we can “see destiny on the horizon,” particularly with the introduction of the vaccine.
“But as is often the case, the last part of the journey can be the most difficult and treacherous. We have a difficult road ahead, but we know where we are going and now we are well on that road,” he said. Mr. McGrath said that we are at a “very serious juncture” regarding the transmission of the virus.
“We fully appreciate the impact that any of the decisions we have made to date and any future decisions have on people’s daily lives,” he said.
“We are deeply aware of that, but the first responsibility of any government is to protect its people, and we will always be motivated solely by the desire to protect public health and save lives.”
Cork South-Central TD said that the country’s hospital system is working well and that the Health Services Executive has done a remarkable job, as have all the front-line staff.
He said the government does not want to scare people about the possibility of the hospital system overflowing and that the best we can all do is follow the rules and public health advice “and have this under control.”
“I believe that regardless of the decision the government makes today, we are at Level 5. And the first principle of Level 5 is that people should stay home.
“Only in certain exceptions should people leave home to engage in essential matters, and I think maybe that’s a rule that is not getting the traction it should. We all have to reflect on our movements and reduce our social interaction,” he said .
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