The 19-24 age group has reduced its incidence rate of the virus from 432 per 100,000 to 41 per 100,000
He also said Ireland has the lowest incidence in Europe of Covid-19 and had protected against the significant mortality many European countries as well as the US had experienced.
Speaking earlier Tony Holohan encouraged people to minimise their social contacts in the run-up to Christmas and cut down on the chance of passing on infection:
'Each one of us accepts that kind of responsibility that we have to try and minimise the risk for us as individuals of picking up this infection. By limiting the number of social contacts we have and choosing carefully the things we do. Really limiting ourselves to things we have to do. That way we can make Christmas as safe a period as possible.'
