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Taoiseach Miche\u00e1l Martin has suggested that the easing of Covid-19 restrictions could be accelerated if progress is maintained.<\/p>\nTaoiseach Miche\u00e1l Martin has suggested that the easing of Covid-19 restrictions could be accelerated if progress is maintained.<\/p>\n
This could include a \u201cblended\u201d return of workers to offices in August, rather than September, as suggested by T\u00e1naiste Leo Varadkar.<\/p>\n
Mr Martin said we will know by the end of the month if the lifting of restrictions can be brought forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we will see towards the end of this month, given the progress we have made to date, whether we can move forward on some areas like that\u201d, he told reporters.<\/p>\n
He added: \u201cWe\u2019ll take advice on it, we\u2019ll take it step by step.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs you\u2019ve seen all along the way, we were able to do things in June that we didn\u2019t signal we would do a month earlier.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were able to do more than what we signaled. And likewise by the end of this month, we will do more than we signaled by August.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat could mean the return of some workers to offices by the end of August.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said that any return to offices would be \u201cblended\u201d, and would not take place all at once.<\/p>\n
Mr Martin was speaking on a visit to Cork, where he stopped on Princes St to take advantage of newly reopened outdoor dining.<\/p>\n
He paid tribute to businesses in the city for their resilience throughout the pandemic.<\/p>\n
He said: \u201cI want to pay real tribute to the traders, they\u2019re always energetic, they\u2019re always thinking of new ways to take on the challenges of Covid-19.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a very quick response to the outdoor dining issue. The people of Cork city have taken to it.<\/p>\n
\u201cCork city council has worked well with the traders and there has been a rapid acceleration of pedestrianization in the city.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Martin also said Government was \u201cvery concerned\u201d about violent scenes on the streets of Dublin over the weekend.<\/p>\n
But he said he believed the situation would \u201csettle down and level out.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe vast majority of people did behave. I believe Covid has created new realities for people as well. It\u2019s very difficult for many, many people\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The Taoiseach also paid tribute to An Garda S\u00edoch\u00e1na, who were criticized in some quarters for their response to the disorder in Dublin.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think An Garda S\u00edoch\u00e1na have worked extremely hard during Covid-19.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt hasn\u2019t been easy for the Gardai either, because they\u2019ve been asked to do things that wouldn\u2019t normally be asked to do.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been a strange period for them too, in terms of the restrictions they\u2019ve had to enforce.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tuesday brought an additional 271 confirmed cases of Covid-19, the Department of Health has said.<\/p>\n
There are 77 people in hospital with the disease, with 27 in intensive care units.<\/p>\n
Daily case numbers may change due to future data review, validation and update, owing to the cyberattack on the HSE.<\/p>\n