Schools and construction are the Government's priority when it comes to easing Ireland's brutal lockdown restrictions.
The Taoiseach today confirmed that classrooms and building sites – both regarded as "essential services" – will be top of the agenda when the Government moves to lift some restrictions.
Micheal Martin promised a Level Five decision of some variety "closer to the middle of the month" – but warned the rest of the country not to expect any grand reopening.
"We will be cautious in our response," he told reporters ahead of a Cabinet meeting.
Mr Martin said schools and construction – two areas that are supposed to stay open even in Level Five, but which closed last month amid an extraordinary spike in case numbers – "are regarded as essential services."
And he added: "Schools is a priority – to get children back into school on a phased basis.
"Numbers are coming down.
"We do really need to get them down to lower levels, and to keep them low, to relieve pressure on frontline healthcare workers – who've been fantastic, and who've done extraordinary work at the coalface for so long.
"The best way to do that is to reduce case numbers, reduce hospitalisations and reduce the numbers of people going into intensive care."
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The Taoiseach's comments come after Dr Ronan Glynn last night said Ireland could – and should – have left the worst effects of Covid-19 behind.
The Deputy Chief Medical Officer said there are "many reasons to be optimistic" that we're through the worst of the disease, after public health chiefs reported 829 cases of Covid-19 yesterday.
But he cautioned that the public must do what public health chiefs tell them if we're to avoid returning to a Level Five lockdown situation down the line.
"There are many reasons to be optimistic, and to have confidence that that's the case," he added.
