Louise O'Reilly
Question:405. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for Health if music and dancing will be permitted when weddings increase to 50 and subsequently to 100 guests. [31393/21]
View answerWednesday, 14 July 2021
Questions (405)
Written answers
As the Deputy will be aware, on 29 June, Government announced the next phase of reopening the economy and society in line with Recovery and Resilience: The Path Ahead.
While significant progress is being made in relation to the roll-out of our vaccination programme and the position had been broadly stable over the earlier part of June, the prevalence of the more transmissible Delta variant is rapidly increasing in Ireland and this poses a significant risk, in particular to those who are not yet fully vaccinated. For this reason, a number of higher risk indoor activities will not recommence as planned on 5 July, pending the implementation of a system to verify vaccination or immunity status. However, as an exception, weddings already planned will be allowed to proceed with the planned increase in the number of guests to 50 at the wedding reception with protective measures from 5 July. Live music and dancing are not currently permitted at weddings as outlined in the Fáilte Ireland guidelines. These guidelines can be found online: covid19.failteireland.ie/operational-guidelines/.
Unfortunately, due to current uncertainties with regard to the Delta variant there is not yet an indication of when live music and dancing will be permitted. The epidemiological situation will be monitored on an ongoing basis and the level of restrictions will be kept under review by Government.
Significant and sustained progress has been made on suppressing the virus over recent months due to the huge effort of people across the country. By working together, we have saved lives and limited the impact of the disease on society in Ireland. To protect the gains of recent months we must continue to practice basic preventative behaviours and to follow public health guidelines.