Events during the year 2022 in Ireland.
Incumbents
President: Michael D. Higgins
Taoiseach: Micheál Martin (FF) (until 17 December 2022) Leo Varadkar (FG) (from 17 December 2022) Tánaiste: Leo Varadkar (FG) (until 17 December 2022) Micheál Martin (FF) (from 17 December 2022) Minister for Finance: Paschal Donohoe (FG) (until 17 December 2022) Michael McGrath (FF) (from 17 December 2022) Chief Justice: Donal O'Donnell Dáil: 33rd Seanad: 26th
Events
January
1 January – 23,281 cases of COVID-19 were recorded, as health officials warned that the true number of cases was likely to be higher, due to increased pressure on the PCR testing system. 4 January – Minister for Education Norma Foley confirmed that schools would reopen as planned on 6 January, despite rising COVID-19 cases. 6 January The culture minister, Catherine Martin, began a consultation programme inviting opinions concerning the creation of a basic income plan for artists. 23,817 cases of COVID-19 were recorded, as people who received a third or booster vaccine dose began receiving an updated Digital COVID Certificate. 7 January – The body of Shane O'Connor, 17, son of singer Sinéad O'Connor and musician Donal Lunny, was found near Bray after being reported missing by the Garda Síochána (police) the previous day. His mother announced he had taken his own life, following two suicide attempts a week before. 8 January – A record 26,122 cases of COVID-19 were reported. 9 January – A 49-year-old father-of-two was shot dead in Ballyfermot, Dublin. 10 January – The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Ireland has reached 1 million people as Deltacron spreading. 12 January A daily number of COVID-19 Deltacron infections has peaked in Ireland. A 23-year-old primary school teacher, Ashling Murphy, was killed beside the canal in Tullamore. 15 January – A National Lottery jackpot building since June 2021 and worth a record €19 million was won by a ticket sold in Castlebar. 18 January Ashling Murphy's funeral took place and a man in his 30s was arrested on suspicion of her murder. A man was charged with the fatal shooting of Michael Tormey in Ballyfermot on 9 January. 17 January – A daily number of COVID-19 Deltacron cases in Ireland has shrinking. 19 January Jozef Puska, a Slovakian national, was charged with the murder of Ashling Murphy. Irish government agreed a plan to give frontline healthcare workers a once-off €1,000 tax-free payment for their work during the COVID-19 pandemic and also agreed on an extra public holiday on 18 March in remembrance of people who died due to COVID-19. 21 January – Taoiseach Micheál Martin announced that the country easing of almost all COVID-19 restrictions from 6a.m. on 22 January, with the requirements of vaccine certificates and social distancing to end, restrictions on household visits and capacity limits for indoor and outdoor events to end, nightclubs to reopen and pubs and restaurants to resume normal trading times, while rules on isolation and the wearing of masks would remain. 25 January The Taoiseach said Ireland was advising against non-essential travel to Ukraine, describing a planned Russian military exercise off the Irish coast in February as unwelcome. Fishermen in the south and west of Ireland announced that they would hold peaceful protests to disrupt Russian naval exercises in February, set to take place within traditional Irish fishing areas. 29 January Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney announced that controversial military exercises by the Russian Navy that were due to take place off the Irish coast had been relocated outside of Ireland's Exclusive Economic Zone. Human remains were found on Lambay Island in County Dublin. A 50-year-old businessman who attempted to stop a thief stealing his car and was carried on the bonnet before being thrown onto the road in Clondalkin, Dublin died from his injuries. The Novavax vaccine was approved for use as Ireland's fifth COVID-19 vaccine. 31 January – Chapters Bookstore in Parnell Street, Dublin, Ireland's largest independent bookshop, closed after trading for 40 years. following the announcement of its plan to do so the previous October.