Antigen tests subsidy will reduce price to under €5

The Government will approve the measure despite considerable concern expressed by the National Public Health Emergency Team about people misusing antigen tests when they have symptoms. 

The Government’s response to Covid-19 is to dominate Tuesday’s Cabinet meeting with a plan to subsidise antigen tests and an extension to business supports to be approved.

Health Minister Stephen Donnelly will seek Government approval to subsidise antigen testing, particularly for poorer families.

Ministers are set to approve the subsidies at the weekly Cabinet meeting which will see the cost of tests reduce to under €5. Earlier suggestions tests could be as cheap as €1 or €2 have been dismissed.

“They will not be that low,” said one senior Government source.

The Government will approve the measure despite considerable concern expressed by the National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet) about people misusing antigen tests when they have symptoms.

The Cabinet is also likely to give approval to the extension of business supports including the Employment Wage Subsidy Scheme (EWSS) and the Covid Retention Subsidy Scheme (CRSS) which were discussed at the Cabinet sub-committee meeting on Monday night.

Mr Donnelly and Taoiseach Micheál Martin will also give Cabinet an update on the latest Covid-19 situation, however, no further restrictions are to be announced this week, ahead of Nphet’s meeting on Thursday.

'Possible referendum'

Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien will table a memo seeking approval to permit the establishment of the independent commission on housing.

Once established, the commission will examine the wording on a possible referendum on the right to own a house, sources have said.

Mr O’Brien will be seeking expressions of interest for membership of the commission, which will be established before Christmas, the Irish Examiner has confirmed.

The new commission will be chaired by John O’Connor, former chief executive of the Housing Agency and will have 12 members. It will also have the ability to establish sub-committees to deal with various issues and seek expert views, Mr O’Brien will tell his Cabinet colleagues.

Ministers will hear the commission will consider long-term housing policy, and its terms of reference will be published once the establishment of the commission has been approved by Cabinet.

It is expected the commission will examine the wording of a possible referendum on housing, the Cabinet memorandum states.

Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe will on Tuesday announce a 12-month review into the retail banking sector in Ireland, having won Cabinet approval to do so.

Mr Donohoe is expected to brief the media after Cabinet on the review, which was commenced in the wake of the withdrawal of Ulster Bank and KBC Bank from the Irish retail banking market.

Mr Donohoe will be launching the terms of reference of the review, which is expected to run for the next 12 months.

The review will be run by a principal officer in Mr Donohoe’s department and a dedicated team to run the review has been established. The process will include a public consultation as well as engagement from the remaining banks, sources have said.