Restrictions were eased at this time, which went on to see Ireland experience a sharp spike of Covid-19 cases. Professor Philip Nolan said Nphet had presented to Cabinet what it thought would happen if the country opened up hospitality and allowed house visits over Christmas 2020. At the time, the Government had promised the country a “meaningful Christmas” after enduring another round of severe restrictions. “We were at 200 cases a day and falling and we were going in and saying, ‘look, things could go badly wrong here’. In a “save Christmas” move, the Government had gone ahead and reopened pubs, although it was short-lived.

Source: Irish Independent April 26, 2022 12:20 UTC