Dr. Ronan Glynn:

If we detail the figures, then our hands and those of a county are tied. In that situation, there is no judgment left to be made and NPHET may as well pack its bags and go home, frankly. The reason that NPHET is there is to utilise judgment and experience and listen to what public health doctors are telling us on the ground. We must give very difficult recommendations at points in time based on all available evidence.

For example, if we were to base recommendations solely on hard criteria, we would have moved Leitrim to a higher level when it had approximately 20 cases.