LATEST: Over 4,000 new cases of virus but numbers in hospital drop again

A further 4,163 people have contracted Covid-19, the Department of Health confirmed this evening.

However, the number of hospitalisations continues to drop, with 545 people now being treated for the virus, a decline of 33. Of these 117 are in ICU, unchanged since yesterday.

Commenting on the latest figures, Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan said additional efforts taken by people to adhere to the public health measures “are having a positive impact”.

Dr Holohan added: “We are beginning to see stabilisation in a range of key indicators of incidence of Covid-19.

“While this progress is very welcome, the level of disease in the community is still a concern. Stabilisation is happening at too high a level.

“The current high incidence is driven by the Delta variant, which, coupled with the presence of the Omicron variant, means that the trajectory of the disease remains uncertain.”