Taoiseach Micheal Martin gave his 15th address to the nation so far this year on Tuesday afternoon.
Among the main points announced were that indoor hospitality will not return as planned next week and that updated guidance on vaccines will mean thousands more people will be inoculated sooner.
Mr Martin said that the ongoing rollout of jabs will provide “a wall of protection” against variants like Delta.
"The simple truth is that we are in a race between the variant and the vaccine," he said.
"Concern has been growing here about the prevalence of the Delta variant. One thing that is very clear is that it is much more transmissible."
He added that the government wants to ensure that once a sector of society is reopened, it is not forced to close again as this process has had "a terrible impact on people"
His announcement was made on foot of "stark" NPHET advice issued on Monday and trashed out in Cabinet today.
Here are the main points from the Taoiseach's speech on lockdown plans:
Pubs and restaurants
When indoor dining and drinking can resume was at the top of the agenda today, with business owners, staff and punters all eagerly awaiting the latest advice.
The expectation that moving hospitality indoors will not go ahead as planned for July 5 was confirmed by the Taoiseach.
However, rather than giving a specific indicator of when trade can resume inside, Mr Martin did not give an exact date when eating and drinking indoors will be allowed to return.
He said NPHET's advice is that the return to indoor hospitality should be limited to those who are fully vaccinated and those who have recovered from Covid.
Therefore, pubs and restaurants will remain closed indoors next week and until July 19 at the least.
However, when service does return, the Taoiseach said that it will be limited to those who have been fully vaccinated first, followed by those who can show they have recovered.
"A return to hospitality will be delayed. NPHET'S clear advice is that given the increased transmissibility, the safe way is to limit access to those who are fully vaccinated or those who have recovered from Covid," Mr Martin said.
It is not yet clear how the 'vaccine tickets' system will be operated in practice, however, with industry stakeholders and even the WHO expressing worry about the scheme.
Other restrictions
The Taoiseach's announcement on the other restrictions being eased, while somewhat overshadowed by the hospitality plans, was largely positive news for many.
Mr Martin said that “great progress has been made” in the battle against Covid-19 but at the same time, "concern has been growing here about the prevalence of the Delta variant".
Despite this, he gave a somewhat optimistic assessment of the months ahead, saying we still have a “summer of music and sport to look forward to".
He confirmed that rules around gatherings, weddings, and outdoor events will be loosened as planned from July 5.
Up to 50 people can attend a wedding celebration or reception from next Monday, an increase from the current limit of 25.
Also from next week, there will be no limits on the number of fully vaccinated people who can meet up indoors. This also applies to those who have recovered from the virus in the past nine months.
The government's roadmap for the return of spectators to outdoor sporting events will also go ahead as scheduled.
Under these plans, up to 200 people will be allowed to attend sports fixtures in the majority of venues outdoors.
A maximum of 500 fans will be allowed in outdoor venues with a minimum capacity of 5,000.
Additionally, international travel is set to be back as forecasted for July 19 in line with the Government's adoption of the EU Digital Green Cert scheme.
Vaccines
Mr Martin said that the government would be "accelerating the vaccine programme and the task force now will advise how we work through the latest advice from NIAC".
One recommendation from NIAC is that people aged between 18 and 40 can be given the AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson vaccines.
Meanwhile, the interval between the first and second doses of AstraZeneca can be cut to four weeks, according to the vaccine advisory body's advice.
Both of these changes to the vaccine programme would mean hundreds of thousands of younger people and those waiting on their second vaccine can now expect to be fully inoculated quicker.
The Taoiseach confirmed that NIAC'S advice will be implemented.
"The simple truth is, we are in a race - vaccines vs the variant. We need to ensure the vaccines win. The new advice means we can get more vaccinated than before. Vaccines are safe, they work and I urge you to take them when you are offered. They are building the wall of infection we need," he said.
"We do not want to lose the progress we have made. I am satisfied this is the safe, sensible, balanced way forward. This delay I am announcing will be treated by dismay and frustration by some. We will provide additional support to these sectors.
"I've talked before about the twists and turns for our journey but our direction of travel is unchanged. We are coming out of this. With continued vigilance and patience, we can ensure the worst of this is behind us"
NPHET warning
The decision on what restrictions will be eased next month was based on projections from NPHET on various scenarios if indoor hospitality resumed.
The Taoiseach said: "We have received clear advice from NPHET, we now need to work through that advice.
"We're not in a position to speculate in any great detail the final response after consulting with the sectors.
"The CMO believes there will be a delta wave across Europe. That makes this a matter of time and pace.
"NPHET are clear we need to get ahead of this and not allow it to proceed and do things that would accelerate the spread of the variant. If we went ahead on July 5, we'd be accelerating the variant and that would set us all back. We want to protect what we've achieved so far."
The impact of allowing more indoor gatherings was laid bare in a 13-page letter from Dr Tony Holohan to the Health Minister Stephen Donnelly on Monday night.
NPHET modelled five scenarios based on the return of indoor social mixing and the increased transmissibility of the Delta variant compared to previous strains.
All scenarios anticipate that case counts "rise very slowly" throughout July 2021, Dr Holohan acknowledged.
NPHET's 'optimistic', or best-case scenario, projections predict that between July 1 and September 30, there would be 81,000 cases, 1,530 admissions to hospital, 195 admissions to ICU, and 250 deaths.
The health emergency team also offered 'pessimistic projections showing a worst-case scenario if restrictions were lifted.
This would include 681,900 cases, 12,985 hospitalisations, 1,685 ICU admissions, and 2,170 deaths, also between July 1 and September 30.
Dr Holohan also warned that "the increased risk of onward transmission associated with this variant makes a significant fourth wave of infection likely".
