Five things on the Executive's agenda ahead of lifting current coronavirus restrictions

Hospital admissions have remained high, however, with many cautioning against opening up society too early only to enter lockdown again a few months later.

Here are five things the Executive will be looking at to guide us out of lockdown.

Infection rates

Before ministers consider easing restrictions, they will want to get infection rates, and the R rate, as low as possible.

While the number of daily Covid cases it at is lowest level in some six months, there has been concern that the number of close contacts linked to positive cases is on the rise.

Health Minister Robin Swann told Stormont's Health Committee last week that the number of close contacts associated with those who have tested positive was just below one at the start of the year, however it is now almost 2.5.

With St Patrick's Day and the Easter holidays around the corner, officials will not want to allow more opportunities for people to mix prematurely, which would likely lead to another surge in cases.

R rate

The R rate of the virus - its reproductive rate - was estimated to be around 1.5 to 1.9 at the beginning of January, however it is currently sitting between 0.75 and 0.85.

Robin Swann however, has cautioned that the rate has now "stabilised and stagnated", so while the spread of the virus is decreasing, it is doing so slowly.

Speaking at an Executive press conference last Thursday, First Minister Arlene Foster also cautioned: "We need to see numbers as low as possible so we can plan for gradually emerging from lockdown.

"We must approach with care so we don't lose the gains we have made, the clear message has been about saving lives and easing pressure."

Vaccinations

In order to start lifting restrictions, Northern Ireland's Chief Medical Officer, Dr Michael McBride, said between 70% and 80% of the population will need to be vaccinated.

To February 11, a total of 373,414 people received their first vaccine dose - almost 20% of NI's total population - so there is still some way to go, according to Dr McBride's target.

In recent weeks 12,500 first doses have been administered every day here - equivalent to almost 5% of the population each week. If this rate continues, 70-80% of the population could be vaccinated by mid-May.

There are several cautionary factors that should be taken into account however, such as vaccine availability, uptake and the impact of mutant strains of the virus.

Mutant Covid strains

There are thousands of different variants of the Covid-19 virus, however those of concern are the strains that have originated from the south east of England, South Africa and Brazil, as experts believe they are more transmissible and may be more resistant to the current vaccines.

The Kent variant, for instance, is thought not to cause more severe illness, but could be up to 70% more infectious and more transmissible by children.

Speaking last month, Queen's University virologist Dr Connor Bamford said the key to ensuring the mutant strains don't spread out of control is vaccinating enough young people.

"The longer we take to vaccinate people, the more chance there is for other variants to emerge. And there is the possibility that one of those may be resistant to the vaccines we already have and that's why it's so important that we get the virus back under control as quickly as we can," he told the Belfast Telegraph.

"The best way to beat this virus is by controlling the spread in the population and stopping other variants in the future and that's why we need the vaccination programme, restrictions on mixing, travel restrictions and a proper track and trace system to keep virus levels as low as possible."

Hospital capacity

The capacity of Northern Ireland's hospitals will be key to ensuring the health service is not overwhelmed and help guide us out of the lockdown.

According to the latest statistics, the five-day rolling average of occupied Covid intensive care beds was 59 as of February 12 - around double the rate seen at the end of December.

The number of Covid patients in general beds has remained relatively static, however, currently sitting at around 440, only slightly higher than at the end of last year.

Hospitals here are still under severe pressure, however, with 754 people waiting longer than 12 hours in emergency departments from February 2 to 8.

As of Monday, 89% of beds in NI's hospital beds were occupied, compared with the system operating over capacity on several occasions at the end of last year.

Keeping these figures down will be imperative in allowing us to gradually exit lockdown and prevent further restrictions being re-introduced in the future.