CHIEF medical officer at the Department of Health, Tony Holohan, said the decision to call for the cancellation of the Ireland vs Italy Six Nations match was "not made lightly".

Dr Holohan said that it was "the only responsible decision that could have been made".

He said: "This won't be the only mass gathering that we will look at but this is one that is coming quite soon and obviously involving an area in Europe that has been added to the list of [affected] countries.

"We could make no other responsible advice or decision."

His comments come as Minister for Health Simon Harris meets with representatives from the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) to discuss next Saturday's game.

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The Department of Health's National Public Health Emergency Team recommended the match should be postponed at a meeting on Tuesday afternoon.

Irish Transport Minister Shane Ross said that while he can't stop rugby fans travelling from Italy to Ireland, he did not want to encourage mass gatherings.

"You certainly don't want to encourage them to gather in a big arena," he told RTE.

"But you can't stop them coming – that would be absolutely wrong. We are keeping the border open, we are not going that far.

"But we are certainly not going to encourage measures which are going to heighten the risk."

Dr Holohan also said he would not be recommending restricting foreign travel.

He said: "We don't think that would be a proportionate measure, WHO [World Health Organisation] is not recommending cancellation or restrictions on foreign travel.

"We make specific travel advisories available and in this country we do that through the Department of Foreign Affairs."

He added: "I think the IRFU is a responsible organisation and would be willing to work with us to ensure that a measure that we have advised – no-one wants to find themselves in a position of having to cancel or recommend [a match] not taking place.

"I'm sure they, as a responsible organisation, will be – just as we are – minded to act in the interests of health and welfare, not only for their spectators but players.

Asked if the game should be played behind closed doors, Dr Holohan said: "That would be a matter for them."

Chief medical officer at the Irish Department of Health, Tony Holohan, said that mass gatherings of people create a particular risk from coronavirus.

"The risk assessment in relation to the specific mass gathering of the rugby match, we made a clear recommendation in relation to that, and that's been a matter of public discussion and we will be meeting the IRFU later in the morning.

"We also set up a process whereby criteria can be both developed and applied to help in the management of decisions around other mass gatherings that might arise over the coming weeks and months."

Speaking at a media briefing at the Department of Health, Dr Holohan added: "What was of concern to us was the nature of the mass gathering, a large group of people coming together from an affected area where we don't believe we fully understand the community transmission pattern in that area.

"We think there be many more cases there that have yet to be identified.

"We don't think any other responsible decision could have been made."

If next Saturday's rugby match is cancelled it could cost millions of euro.

Asked who will pick up the bill, Dr Holohan said: "We are having an engagement with the IRFU after this conference and I don't want to pre-empt the outcome of that discussion."

Dr Holohan added: "We've also made some important changes to the way in which, in particular people who have had testing, that they would no longer be required to stay in the hospital environment pending the outcome of that testing.

"That would be an important way of helping to reduce some of the pressure in holding those patients in a hospital environment pending the outcome of that test."

Speaking ahead of his meeting with Irish health minister Simon Harris, Philip Browne, IRFU chief executive, said: "It would be somewhat unfair to be asking the IRFU to make decisions like this.

"I think ultimately we will comply with whatever directive we will be given."

Asked if he was unhappy that they had learned of the recommendations to postpone the match via the media, Browne said: "I don't have anything to comment on that at the moment, but at this stage we are going in to talk to the minister and we are happy to do that."

IRFU chief executive Philip Browne has confirmed that the Ireland v Italy Six Nations March has been called off.

Browne said: "We had a very positive meeting with Minister Harris and his advisers where we requested an instruction as to the staging of the rugby international matches over the next weekend.

"At the meeting we were informed that the Public Health and Emergency Team has determined that the series of matches should not proceed in the interest of public health.

"The IRFU is perfectly happy to comply with this instruction.

"We will immediately begin to work with our Six Nation partners at the possibility of rescheduling those three matches and I would hope to have an update on that in the coming days.

"We have a lot of work to do with our Six Nations partners and with Italy, who are going to have to make a lot of rearrangements."