‘We have to be careful’ – Ministers address possibility of further restrictions

14,815 cases of Covid-19 were confirmed in the past week.

Minister Eamon Ryan has said that he does not expect Covid-19 restrictions to be reintroduced in Ireland, despite growing case numbers and concern from members of Cabinet. The Minister for Transport, Climate, Environment and Communications answered questions on the possibilities of future restrictions as he arrived to Dáil Éireann for a Cabinet meeting on Wednesday morning. "I don't believe they will be [reimposed]," he said while speaking to RTÉ News. "We discussed that last night, and neither Tony Holohan nor anyone else in the room felt that that would be the appropriate response. We do have to be careful and keep our distance and follow the basic hygiene rules. "As well as personal responsibility, I think sectors have responsibility, so every organisation if they're organising an event; just to do it in a way that keeps people distanced, it's not to say no to things, it's not to stop, but just to be cognisant that the virus is out there at scale and for all our interests it's best to put simple measures in place, but I don't think it'll be a returning on restrictions," Ryan added. Wednesday's meeting will discuss the proposed carbon budgets that were put forward to the minister this week. Minister Ryan was confident that the plans would be approved, as "the next generation's future is at stake". His sentiments were echoed by Health Minister Stephen Donnelly, following the "stark warning" he shared with fellow ministers in a meeting on Tuesday night. Elaborating on his concerns for a possible surge in cases, Donnelly said: "We're not looking at additional restrictions but we are very keen to get the message out that the case numbers are serious, and we all need to do what we've done in the past which is to be sure we're adhering to the public safety measures. "The average number of cases, or the number over the last week, is the fourth highest week we've had since Covid arrived here. So the only three weeks that were higher than last week were the three highest weeks in January," Donnelly explained. "It is going to get worse before it gets better," he added. Featured Image via Leah Farrell / RollingNews.ie