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Leo Varadkar has said that restrictions are unlikely to be lifted in late January if Ireland still reports a high number of daily coronavirus cases.
Ireland’s 5-day daily case moving average is currently at a staggering 2,007.
And the Tanaiste confirmed that further restrictions cannot be ruled out as the country struggles to contain the virus.
However, he added that the measures that were adopted on December 30 should have a chance to work before they are reevaluated.
(Image: PHOTO PHOTO BY JULIEN BEHAL)
Varadkar told RTE’s This Week program on Sunday that the current lockdown could remain in place until those most at risk have been vaccinated, which could be in February.
The Fine Gael leader also confirmed that, as things stand, the government is going ahead with plans to reopen schools on January 11.
It comes after Eamon Ryan suggested that the 5km exercise limit could be lowered to just 2km if Covid-19 continues to spread across the country.
The Green Party leader also said there were no plans to extend school closings, and schools are currently expected to reopen on January 11.
He explained that a further reduction of the travel limit could be considered if the virus is not controlled.
Ryan told Newstalk this morning: “The level of contact we have is always in our hands, so if that is, for example, the reduction of travel restrictions from 5km to 2km, which we did in March and Last April, and there are a variety of other different measurements that we could look at.
“But that’s for a week or two, if we find that the numbers aren’t starting to flatten out and decline.
“I think they can, nothing is for sure, but my sense of looking at traffic numbers and anecdotally from friends, I think the Irish are very aware of the risks and the stakes.
“I think collectively we have been fine in the last nine months and we will be this week, shutting down tight, avoiding contacts and simple measures like that are the way to handle this.
“And I think that if we all do that, we will see those numbers start to drop again and we will avoid the worst consequences for our hospitals.”
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