STORMONT ministers will be later asked to agree plans to impose new Covid-19 restrictions in the North of Ireland after Christmas.
Health Minister Robin Swann said he would put forward a number of “robust and extreme” recommendations at an executive meeting on Thursday.
It comes amid warnings from health officials that the system is struggling with winter pressures exacerbated by the pandemic.
Mr Swann has not given exact details of the proposals in his paper.
Bed occupancy across all hospitals here on Tuesday was at 105 per cent.
Ministers will have to decide the date of when any new measures would take effect, how long they would last and how strict they would be.
They will also assess the latest data from the chief medical officer and chief scientific adviser regarding the R-number here, which measures the infection rate of the virus.
Derry and Strabane had been in its circuit breaker lockdown since October 5 after a huge spike in cases and only reopened to the public last Friday.
The Executive has expressed concerns that the spread of the virus has not reduced following a two-week limited lockdown, and that cases could spike further after the Christmas holidays unless more interventions are introduced.
The lockdown, which ended last Friday, saw non-essential retail, close contact services and hospitality largely have to shut – but Chief Scientific Adviser Prof Ian Young said evidence showed not enough people had followed the “stay at home” guidance.
Stormont sources suggested ministers were aware of the need to arrive at a decision regarding new restrictions on Thursday and communicate it immediately.
Ministers are also expected to discuss a decision by England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales to strengthen guidance about how people can meet up with families over Christmas.
On Wednesday, London and the devolved governments agreed to keep in place a plan to allow households to form “Christmas bubbles” from 23 to 27 December.
Three households will be allowed to meet – apart from in Wales where a law change will allow just two households, before a lockdown is reintroduced on 28 December.
In Scotland, people are being asked to only meet on one of the five days.
The first and deputy first ministers said they wanted to ensure people in Northern Ireland were not isolated over Christmas, but stressed that “personal responsibility” should be a priority for anyone planning to have contact with others.
Economy Minister Diane Dodds said she would also bring more details of her new support scheme for pubs that do not serve food, which have been forced to remain closed, to Thursday’s executive meeting.
It has yet to open, but last month the executive allocated £10.6m in funding to the sector.
On Wednesday, eight deaths linked to Covid-19 were recorded in the North of Ireland, with one in the Derry City and Strabane District Council area.
It took the Department of Health’s total to 1,143.
There have been 510 more positive tests, meaning there have been 59,631 cases overall.
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