CMO: Covid-19 Trends Moving In Wrong Direction More Rapidly Than Anticipated

764 more people tested positive for the virus including 44 in Cork, while four more people have died.

Dr Tony Holohan says "inter-generational mixing" at Christmas could lead to far more elderly people being infected and dying. 

The infection rate among those aged 19-44 more than doubled in the nine days leading up to yesterday's six-week record figure. 

Professor Anthony Staines says the government's control strategy for the pandemic just isn't working -- and can't be sustained: 

"We can lock down forever, but what's the point unless we take the follow through actions? We come out of a lockdown- numbers go up, go into another lockdown- numbers go down. We do this a few times, and the surviving economy gets vaccinated. The Taoiseach was talking about starting mass vaccination in August, which, unfortunately, I think, is realistic, and that means this will go on till next November."