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Foreign Minister Simon Coveney has said inter-county travel is likely to be one of the areas the government is targeting when they debate new restrictions tomorrow in cabinet.
Inister Coveney said he expects these measures to be enacted before January 6.
“I think it can help. We will do what we always do and make decisions with the facts in front of us to protect people and keep them safe this Christmas. We may need to introduce more restrictions before January 6, in fact I hope that will be the case. But we will have to decide when and what restrictions to introduce given the growth in numbers that we are seeing day by day, ”he told Claire Byrne on RTÉ Radio One.
“I understand that hoteliers and restaurants have to buy from stock and it is a time of year when these businesses make a significant percentage of their profits and that is why we made the decision eight weeks ago to impose strict restrictions for six weeks to try for free. until the Christmas period.
“Now we are saying that the growth rate of the virus is above expectations and we will have to respond to that, but we will try to do so in a balanced and fair way. We will give certainty to the people immediately after the cabinet tomorrow ”.
Minister Coveney said he does not expect any extension of the school holidays after Christmas even though Transport Minister Eamon Ryan said this morning that it was a consideration that the cabinet would do tomorrow morning.
“No, I think it is highly unlikely. You have to take everything into account, but I would be very surprised if the school year were interrupted. There is no strong evidence to suggest that the virus spreads at school, so I do not anticipate an extension of the vacation. “
Earlier, Transport Minister Eamon Ryan said the cabinet is likely to announce a variety of new restrictions tomorrow.
The Transport Minister said that it is the speed of the increase in the number of cases, rather than the number of cases themselves, that is of most concern to Nphet and the government.
“It is only in the last few days that we have seen this spike that would lead us to re-impose restrictions earlier than originally thought. More restrictions are likely, yes. Before originally planned. In a variety of measures, changes are likely.
Minister Ryan said the increase in cases in recent days has highlighted the need for as many people to get vaccinated as possible, saying it is “the best way out of this.”
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