Taoiseach Micheál Martin has played down the possibility of further travel restrictions as he revealed that a negative test requirement for all incoming passengers has seen reduced numbers coming into the country.

Mr Martin told reporters at Dublin Castle that putting in place further travel restrictions is “not the direction” the Government is going “right now”.

Mr Martin added that Ireland wants to align itself with the EU, and that the WHO and ECDC are not advocating further travel restrictions.

Meanwhile, he apologised to people who were stuck in queues outside walk-in vaccination centres today.

“Any mix up or any inconvenience to people - we want to make the vaccines as accessible to people as we possibly can.

“We don’t like to have to say to people, you know, it’s oversubscribed and to turn away and we apologise to people in that position.”

He also said that the Government is “constantly working on expanding and ramping up” the vaccine booster rollout.

He declined to say if parents will have to take their children out of school for their jab, or if vaccines are going to be administered in schools, saying that the HSE will put in place a “comprehensive plan”.

Mr Martin said that he could not rule out further restrictions before Christmas, as he could not rule out “further public health advice”.

He said that the “primary weapon against Omicron is the booster”, which he said that early data is showing that it may be “more infectious” but not make people sicker.

“We want to get the balance right here in terms of people’s quality of life, the economy,” he added.