While the entire country has been placed on Level 3 coronavirus restrictions from today, there are still fears that Ireland could be heading towards a full lockdown at some stage in the future.
There was widespread panic last week when it emerged that NPHET experts recommended that the entire country be placed on Level 5 lockdown.
However the Government moved to reject the advice in favour of upgrading the country to Level 3 restriction, which had already been in place for Dublin and Donegal.
And while the Government has emphasised plans to adapt a graduated approach to restrictions, a total lockdown has not been dismissed.
Just this week it emerged that Tanaiste Leo Varadkar told Fine Gael party members that the prospect of a 'circuit breaker' cannot be ruled out if cases continue to rise.
What is a circuit breaker?
The idea of a circuit breaker would involve a total lockdown similar to what was put in place at the start of the pandemic.
However this would be for a much shorter period of time such as two weeks and would only be put in place if cases continue to soar.
The idea of the circuit breaker would give the country time to bring cases down over a period of a couple of weeks while also allowing time for contact tracers to aggressively pursue cases and curb further spread of the virus.
Are there plans in place for a circuit breaker in Ireland?
Currently the idea of a circuit breaker lockdown are not included in the Government's five-level 'Living with Covid' plan.
However it's reported that it is something the Government would need to plan for but an idea that is on the table for the future.
