CMO would welcome measures to reduce alcohol consumption during pandemic

"Any measures that would help in terms of the reduction of our consumption of alcohol in the context of this infection would be very, very welcome," said Dr Tony Holohan.

The Chief Medical Officer says any new measures to crack down on people's consumption of alcohol would be "very welcome".

The Government is considering new regulations and greater enforcement powers for Gardaí to stop groups of people drinking in public.

The Tánaiste has said a ban on the sale of all alcohol, at a particular time of day, is one measure being looked at.

Dr Tony Holohan said that whether it is being consumed in pubs or other indoor settings, alcohol has played a role in the spread of the virus.

"I've said on a number of occasions before - the virus loves alcohol. That is a concern for us.

"The way we have consumed and our pattern of use of alcohol in this country has been a challenge.

"Any measures that would help in terms of the reduction of our consumption of alcohol in the context of this infection would be very, very welcome."

Health officials have said they are "gravely concerned" as the coronavirus reproduction number could now be as high as 3.

It is by far the highest estimate since the pandemic began and means someone with the virus will pass it on to three others on average.

A further 10 deaths linked to Covid-19 were confirmed last night and 6,521 new cases.

Professor Philip Nolan, chair of Nphet's modelling advisory group, says all indicators are at record levels but there are signs we may have reached the peak.

"Put simply, in the last couple of days we have begun to see some possibility that when we come back next week that we may not be reporting growth rates as high as 14%. They are simply unsustainable.

"If you think about the measures that we have introduced, it is inconceivable that they would have had no effect on growth rate and that we would be coming back next week to say that despite all of those measures reproduction numbers are still 2.4 to 3."