The Taoiseach has said that efforts are being made to revise phases four and five of easing Covid-19 restrictions in order to have the country “almost fully open” by the middle of July.

The Taoiseach has said that efforts are being made to revise phases four and five of easing Covid-19 restrictions in order to have the country “almost fully open” by the middle of July. 
This includes an earlier than planned re-opening of hairdressers and beauty salons, which under the current plans are due to reopen on 20 July.
Leo Varadkar said that work should be done “probably this week”. 
However, he warned that this depended on the virus remaining under control and there was always a risk it “might make a comeback”. 
Speaking on 2FM’s Breakfast show, Mr Varadkar expressed his condolences to the families of all those who have died from Covid-19. 
He said the last couple of days have been quite encouraging and only around 1% of the thousands of tests being carried out are coming back positive, “which gives us some reassurance that we’re going in the right direction”. 
Mr Varadkar said it is possible that the worst of the pandemic is over but “it is not over yet” and we want to get to a situation where the number of new cases every day are down to or close to zero and that new cases can be dealt with quickly. 
He said we do not want to lock down the whole country again and urged people to continue to follow the public health advice on social distancing, hand washing and self-isolating if you feel unwell. 
He said that Ireland has been following European and World Health Organization guidelines on facemasks. 
He said different authorities are giving different advice but said the best evidence we have on masks comes from the Lancet, which comes down very strongly in favour of face masks in healthcare settings. 
He said face masks can be beneficial in settings such as public transport and crowded indoor spaces where it is not possible to social distance, but they are not a “magic shield” or an alternative to other public health advice, such as social distancing and hand hygiene. 
He said there is a job of work to do in getting across the “dos and don’ts” of wearing masks to the general public because if worn incorrectly they are of no benefit. 
Mr Varadkar said that the flu vaccine will be offered to more people for free this year and a nasal spray version will be available for children, which has not been available in Ireland before. 
He said efforts will be made to continue stockpiling Personal Protective Equipment and keeping extra bed capacity available.