The Cabinet will consider today whether to extend the current Level 5 Covid-19 restrictions until early March, as well as introducing a limited form of mandatory quarantine for certain visitors.
The proposals were agreed by the Cabinet sub-committee on Covid-19 last night.
Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said the change to travel policy was needed to tackle the rise of new variants of the coronavirus.
Extending the current Covid-19 restrictions has been well-flagged by ministers over the past week.
The date of 5 March would bring Ireland in-step with similar restrictions in Northern Ireland.
Mandatory quarantine for 14-days is being considered for any incoming passenger who arrives without a negative PCR test result, or if they have travelled from either South Africa and Brazil.
In a further bid to dissuade unnecessary travel, gardaÃÂ could be tasked with increasing their checks at airports and ports and fining people found to have breached regulations for going or returning from a foreign holiday.
https://www.rte.ie/news/2021/0126/1192030-ireland-covid-latest/
