Govt plays down talks of extending Halloween mid-term in schools

The government’s played down suggestions that mid-term breaks for schools could be extended as part of plans to contain the spread of Covid-19.

The idea of closing schools for two weeks over Halloween was briefly mentioned at a cabinet meeting this week.

But the Department of Education says no decision has been taken yet, and pointed out that many of the cases linked to schools so far have been picked up outside that setting.

The Finance Minister says he hasn’t been involved in any discussions on extending the midterm for schools.

Minister Paschal Donohoe says no proposal has put to him yet on this issue.