With Covid restrictions relaxed, the St. Patrick's Day parade gets the green light!
After a two-year absence, the St. Patrick's Day parade will take place in Ireland in March.
Over the past two years, the annual celebration of the country's patron saint has moved online as the country has battled the coronavirus pandemic.
However, after announcing the lifting of most Covid restrictions, Tourism Minister Catherine Martin confirmed that a physical parade would be held in 2022.
"I can confirm that after two years of absence, there will be a parade on St. Patrick's Day and we will have a physical parade." She said.
"All of this is going on and we've been working on contingency plans behind the scenes, but we're excited that there's going to be a physical march now and we'll be announcing the details soon."
The country's chief medical officer elaborated on the rationale for removing almost all Covid restrictions, saying the Omicron variant produced a smaller burden of severe disease at peak cases than reported at two to three times higher.
In a letter to the government, Dr. Tony Holohan said that during the Omicron pandemic, the number of cases was close to the most pessimistic projections, but serious clinical outcomes were "well below expectations."
