Taoiseach: Half of those arriving into country are Irish returning from holidays

Taoiseach Micheál Martin said: "We don't want people going on holidays and the clear message is 'do not travel for non-essential purposes'." Picture Colin Keegan, Collins Dublin

Half of those arriving into the country are Irish people returning from holidays, the Taoiseach has said.

Micheál Martin has also confirmed that those over the age of 70 will now not be given the 'game-changer' AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine.

Mr Martin said approximately 800 people had arrived into Ireland from abroad on Wednesday and "about 50% of those were Irish coming back from holidays".

"We don't want people going on holidays and the clear message is 'do not travel for non-essential purposes' and with that in mind, the gardaí have checkpoints at airports and the ports to intercept people," he said.

Mr Martin said fines have increased from €100 to €500 for people found in breach of level five regulations which he said will act as a deterrent.

"Going to the airport to go abroad is a breach of level five."

Mr Martin added that close to 99% of people are taking a PCR test before travelling, but added that everyone who arrives in the country should restrict their movements in line with public health advice.

Speaking on TodayFM, Mr Martin said no decision has been made in relation to the traditional St Patrick's visit to the White House and no invitation has yet been received.

"Both administrations are going to approach this very carefully. The relationship between the United States and Ireland is a very special one but also a very important one, culturally, we've very strong ties with families and immigration and so forth and Joe Biden is a personification of that as an elected president. But also the economic connections are extremely important," he said.

Meanwhile, the HSE has now been tasked with drafting a new vaccination plan after it was advised that those over 70 should receive the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines.

Mr Martin admitted that the move away from using AstraZeneca, which can be easily stored and administered by GPs, will pose challenges.

"That will mean change in terms of the operation of the plan and will be a significant logistical challenge to the health service executive, and they're currently working through the implications of this," Mr Martin said.

The Taoiseach said: "All three vaccines are safe and effective but given the higher efficacy data around the mRNA vaccines, namely Pfizer and Moderna, the CMO is recommending that it would be preferable to use them were practical and timely for the over 70s.

"Given that the over 70s are the most vulnerable to death and to illness if they get Covid, the recommendation is that we apply those vaccines — Moderna and Pfizer — to the over 70s and that is what's going to happen."

However, the Taoiseach promised the rollout of community vaccinations to our over 70s will begin as planned this month starting with those aged 85 and over.

Mr Martin suggested that the vaccinations of other groups may now be brought forward as a result of the recommendation.

"It means for other groupings and the cohorts four, five, six and seven that they'll be able to come forward in terms of AstraZeneca," he said.