Press release
Ireland placed on Level 5 Restrictions of the Plan for Living with COVID-19 - with a number of specific adjustments
From Department of the Taoiseach
Published on
Last updated on
From Department of the Taoiseach
Published on
Last updated on
The government has today agreed that from midnight on 24 December until 12 January, Level 5 restrictions will apply nationally. There will be a number of specific adjustments to Level 5 and, in addition, certain transitional arrangements will apply during the Christmas period.
The government has considered a number of factors in arriving at this decision, including NPHET concerns at the rapid increase in COVID-19 case numbers over recent days, the nature of social interaction likely to take place over the Christmas period involving mixing between younger and older people and the risk that this could lead to a wave of infection with a higher risk age profile.
The government has also considered the economic and social impacts of the re-introduction of Level 5 restrictions. A double rate of Covid Restrictions Support Scheme (CRSS) will be paid for two weeks to businesses that are forced to close as a direct result of government restrictions on 26 December. Commercial rates relief will apply for affected areas for Q1 2021.
The adjustments to Level 5 are as follows:
The specific transitional arrangements for the Christmas period are as follows:
From 3pm on 24 December:
(*) For those who are part of a support bubble, the bubble counts as one household.
Up to and including 26 December:
Up to and including 31 December:
From 1 January:
Up to and including 2 January 2020:
From 3 January:
The government has also agreed that the current restrictions on travel from Britain to Ireland should remain in place until at least 31 December, but kept under constant review in the light of unfolding information and circumstances.
ENDS
The Covid Restrictions Support Scheme (CRSS) which supports businesses significantly impacted by public health restrictions; qualifying businesses will be eligible for up to a weekly maximum payment of €5000; to date, payments totalling €114m in respect of 15,600 business premises have been made under CRSS.
In addition, as previously announced by the government, businesses benefiting from CRSS for the weeks of 28 December and 4 January will receive a double payment up to a maximum of €5000 and should restrictions last for three weeks or more, businesses in receipt of CRSS will be eligible for payment of an additional weeks restart payment on reopening at the end of the period of restrictions.
Commercial rates relief will apply for affected sectors for the first three months of 2021.
The Employment Wage Subsidy Scheme (EWSS) which provides support of €350 per week per eligible employee to help maintain people in jobs – to date €1.2bn in support has been provided under the scheme, replacing the Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme, which provided support of over €2.5bn between March and August.
Other supports include extensive tax warehousing arrangements; reduced VAT rates, both at the standard rate and at the lower rate for the hospitality and tourism sectors; the spend and stay scheme; a range of reduced cost loans, grants and voucher schemes, such as the €2 billion COVID-19 Credit Guarantee Scheme, COVID-19 Business Loans from Microfinance Ireland, the Sustaining Enterprise Fund, and Trading Online Vouchers.
In addition, the COVID-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment of up to €350 per week will continue to be available to all employees and the self-employed who have lost their job due to the pandemic.