May 13
First Minister Arlene Foster said she expected Northern Ireland to reach stage five of its pathway to recovery "long before" December 5.
"I would be very much hopeful that, unless there has been a second peak or second wave of this," she stated.
Stage five would have seen nightclubs open their doors, concerts happening, spectators attending sporting events, people returning to work and the hospitality sector reopened.
However, the country found itself in a two week circuit-breaker lockdown from November 27. Restrictions were later loosened in the run up to the festive season but that has led to the current spike in virus cases.