Confirming that the situation is being closely monitored, four more counties could soon join Dublin and Donegal on level three if cases continue to rise.
Donegal became the first county to join Dublin on risk level three during the week, with public health officials saying that the same regulations are being considered for four other counties.
Speaking to
RTÉ today, Minister Donnelly said that he is "cautiously optimistic" that the newly-introduced Dublin restrictions are working - flagging that it is still "very early days" though so is too soon to tell for sure.
Urging people to continue limiting their social interactions, he said:
"Think about all the people you are planning on meeting in the next week or two, and half that number. If we all reduce our contacts, then we will push this virus back.
"What I want, what everybody wants, is that we get every county and every part of this country back down to level one as quickly as possible."
Due to meet during the week, the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) will discuss whether localised lockdowns should be introduced for Cork, Galway, Louth and Wicklow. Saying that he doesn't foresee a decision being announced prior to Thursday's meeting, Donnelly added that "right now, there are no plans for NPHET to meet earlier, to make any recommendations to government at this time".
