The reopening of personal services like hairdressers is "not too far away" according to Tanaiste Leo Varadkar.
The Fine Gael leader refused to give any exact dates for reopenings this summer but said that some are not far off - while warning that cases are still too high for an immediate reopening.
Speaking earlier today on Instagram Live, Mr Varadkar made a point that things could change very quickly for the worse.
The Tanaiste said: “The number of cases daily is still quite high and the number of workplace outbreaks is still high too. We’re very worried that if people go back to the workplace too quickly we might find more work place outbreaks that might jeopardize our plans to reopen.
“The real message to people is work from home if possible. Don’t feel under pressure from your employer to go back to work if you can work from home. People are making arrangements to go into work if you have to, try to go in on a solitary basis. It’s people mixing of course that causes difficulties.”
While outdoor sports training is resuming on April 26 for underage teams and inter-county GAA training starting a week earlier, many are asking when gyms will reopen.
But Mr Varadkar could not give a definitive answer on gyms.
He added: “I don’t know, hopefully soon. They just opened in England. It might be another couple of weeks before it’s possible here. I know we’d all love to be back in the gym. Of course, the main message today is asking people to work from home for the next few weeks or months until we get on top of this virus."
However, he did signal that universities could have people return by autumn.
“With Universities, we’re really hopeful that we will have people on campus in September/October. Obviously vaccinations and antigen testing are key to that so students can have some sort of normal experience this year.”
And it might not be too long before you can finally get rid of your lockdown hair!
“In regards to hairdressers, again, we don’t know for sure, but we would expect personal services like hairdressers, barbers and beauticians and so on to reopen on a phased basis in May, so not too far away.”
