Government agrees to end almost all Covid restrictions starting next week

The Cabinet has agreed to an end to almost all Covid restrictions, starting from next Monday.

The remainder of restrictions in place including mask wearing in schools, on public transport and in retail and hospitality settings will be voluntary from the start of next week.

However, masks will still be required in health care settings.

According to RTÉ there will be advice that people should continue to wear masks on public transport, but it will not be required by law.

Along with this easing of restrictions, NPHET itself will “be wound-up” also, but the Chief Medical Officer will continue to monitor “epidemiological profile of the disease”.

The Cabinet has backed the recommendation from the National Public Health Emergency Team’s to end mandatory mask wearing.

On his way to Cabinet earlier, Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly told RTÉ that based on the current trajectory of the disease “and based on how many people have been vaccinated and boosted”, lifting most of the remaining restrictions “is the appropriate thing to do at this time”.

Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly has said he accepts there is a sense of nervousness among some people around the lifting of remaining restrictions, and so the advice is to continue to wear masks on public transport for example | https://t.co/DW877frDoh pic.twitter.com/UsBkdEvh3q

— RTÉ News (@rtenews) February 22, 2022

He accepted that some people may be nervous at the prospect of Covid restrictions lifting, so advice to wear masks on public transport will remain in place.

Header image via Shutterstock 

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