The country will enter a six-week lockdown from midnight on Wednesday.
Cabinet Ministers have this evening approved moving to level five restrictions until the start of December.
It had been expected a 'Level 4 plus' system would be placed on the entire country for a period of three or four weeks.
However, the Government have since recommended moving the country to the highest level of restrictions.
Confirmed: Cabinet approves the country moving to level five restrictions from midnight on Wednesday
— Seán Defoe (@SeanDefoe) October 19, 2020
Schools and creches will stay open under level five.
Elite sport, including inter-county GAA & the Six Nations, will be allowed to go ahead.
Children will be allowed to play sport in outdoor pods of no more than 15.
People will be told not to move more than 5km from their home, with a graduated system of penalties including fines being worked on.
There is likely to be a bubble system outlined so vulnerable people are not left alone.
Construction sites will stay open, but all non-essential retail will close with the loss of hundreds of thousands of jobs.
A new band will be added to the Pandemic Unemployment Payment meaning anyone who was earning more than €400 a week before losing their job will get a payment of €350 a week.
The new restrictions will take place from midnight on Wednesday for six weeks - meaning they'll be in place until the start of December.
Additional reporting by Seán Defoe
