Dr. Tony Holohan:

In broad terms, we have effectively extinguished it from the community in general, right across the country. Much of the caseload that is now being reported is seen in the context of particular settings. We are still seeing some positive numbers in residential care facilities, though the number has reduced very substantially, and in some occupational settings. That is not to say that there are not some cases, but we have effectively extinguished it, which was the strategy from the very start. We have to start with suppressing this infection across the community before we have a chance of protecting nursing homes or other specific settings.

On the specific question around criteria and measures, the actual threshold may change from time to time. How we view, say, a figure of 30 people in an intensive care unit at a certain point will depend on whether the number on the previous day was 29 or three. As such, the particular number very much depends on the context. We have a series of criteria that are set out in the Government's Roadmap for Reopening Society and Business. These refer to the disease and a range of other metrics concerning testing, contact tracing, health service capacity and the broad impact of the measures on the health and well-being of the public. All of these are taken into account in the staged recommendations and advice to the Government around easing restrictions.