Big boost for Christmas as Stephen Donnelly says we could enter Level 2 immediately after the lockdown

Pubs, shops and restaurants could reopen below level 2 in just four weeks.

Hopes for a happier Christmas are raised after Stephen Donnelly raised the possibility of going back three massive steps on the ‘Living With Covid’ scale in December.

The Health Minister said that the “plan” for December is to “reopen” and then added that “there is a possibility that it will be Level 2.”

We are currently in a tough Level 5 lockdown with the economy and society in general frozen.

And we are likely to be there for almost four more weeks as it is increasingly unlikely that a planned review within fifteen days will see a relaxation of restrictions.

But Donnelly has given the country hope that after that, we could make a big leap back to Level 2 on December 1 if we’re good between now and then.

This would reopen the High Streets and allow holiday shoppers to go for a pint at a bar or eat something inside a restaurant after hitting the shops.

And the sport would also be back at level 2, both for players and spectators at games and matches.

Donnelly brought the good news to an interview on RTE’s News at One.

He said: “The plan for December is, for the first week of December, to reopen.

“There are several ways that can be done that will be considered further closer to date, but critically to keep the country open.

“So for example it could be a Tier 3, there is a possibility that it is Tier 2, or maybe a regional approach is taken.”

Unfortunately, the figures in Dublin are still stubbornly high today, with up to 40% of all cases registered in the capital on any given day.

This is leading government strategists to consider more regional closures to allow less severe restrictions on cities or counties that can show they have controlled their Covid rates.

Donnelly said: “The rate is falling well in some parts of the country, but again in Dublin it is not falling that fast.

“There are some parts of Dublin where it doesn’t fall quickly and there is a part in the southwest where it doesn’t fall at all.

“And there are parts of North Dublin where it’s actually coming back up.

“So all of these details need to be scrutinized as we figure out the best way to open up as much as we can, but critically, to do so in a way that doesn’t allow the virus to grow back. again.”