Restrictions to take effect from Sunday Midnight
Taoiseach Micheál Martin: "All restaurants and bars, excluding takeaways, or delivery services must close at 8pm.
There should be no indoor events after 8pm. For indoor events scheduled earlier in the day, attendance should be limited to 50% of venue capacity or 1,000 people- whichever is lower. Attendance at all outdoor events should be limited to 50% of venue capacity, or 5,000 people- whichever is lower.
Wedding receptions can take place after 8pm but with a capacity limit of 100 guests.
Restricted movement advice for all close contacts will be enhanced. For those who have received a booster at least one week ago, they will have to restrict movement for five days and take three antigen tests. For those that have not yet received a booster- they must restrict their movement for 10 days. The HSE will consider the best testing regime for people in this category.
All people arriving into the country from overseas will be required to have an antigen or PCR test in line with our vaccination or recovery status. And all passengers arriving in Ireland should now be advised to conduct antigen testing on a daily basis for a period of five consecutive days commencing on the day of arrival.
None of this is easy. We are all exhausted with Covid and the restrictions it requires. The twists and turns, the disappointments and the frustrations take a heavy toll on everyone. But it is the reality that we are dealing with. We cannot wish it away. And there is no silver bullet to fix it.
We talk about living with Covid and some believe that this means just going back to how we did things before it arrived. It doesn't. It means understanding the disease, monitoring it, making changes when it changes and doing whatever we need to to protect people's lives, health and livelihoods.
News this evening would be deeply disappointing for many. It is not the news I wanted to bring you, nor is it the news you wanted to hear.
However- and this is important. The truth is that we are in a much better place than we were this time last year and we will be in a much better place in 2022. The New Year will bring new antiviral drugs and new therapeutics.
Our economic recovery has been much stronger than anyone predicted. And this will endure next year.
We just need to get to the other signs of this Omicron wave as safely as possible.
As we have done throughout this Covid crisis, we just need to remember that each of us is responsible for all of us. We will come through this latest setback as we have come through everything else that Covid has thrown at us together.
We may have to dig a little bit deeper to access it this time. But the unique resilience, solidarity and trust in science that has marked Ireland out across the world will get us through this too. This Christmas, please be safe and look after each other.
Go raibh míle míle maith agaibh go léir."
