All counties in Ireland to move to Level 3 restrictions

The Irish Government has announced that all counties in Ireland are to be place under Level 3 Covid-19 restrictions for three weeks, effective from midnight on Tuesday, 6 October.

The Government announcement follows an unexpected National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet) recommendation on Sunday, 4 October, that the entire country be placed on Level 5 restrictions, which would essentially have meant a full lockdown.

The Government recently published its National Framework for living with Covid-19, which involves five different levels of restrictions – Level 1 being the most lenient, and Level 5 the most severe.

The majority of the country had been at Level 2, except for Dublin and Donegal, which were at Level 3, with some added restrictions, due to the high number of positive Covid-19 cases being recorded in those counties.

The announcement of a move to Level 3 follows a challenging day for the Irish hair and beauty industry on Monday, as it waited for news regarding the Government decision. All salons and spa would have had to close again under Level 5 restrictions.

Under Level 3 restrictions, the Government document states that services such as hairdressers, beauticians, barbers ‘may remain open with strict adherence to sectoral guidance on protective measures’. Spas can remain open also, with the document noting that there is is ‘specific guidance’ available for this sector.

The Hairdressing Council of Ireland had asked members early on Monday to try and stay positive, acknowledging that it was ‘a hugely stressful and distressing time’.