It is unfair to have a “one size fits all” rule in relation to the number of people who can attend church, according to the Catholic Archbishop of Dublin, Diarmuid Martin.

He was speaking after the Government announced Friday that at most fifty people could attend indoor events, including religious services, a decision that Dr Martin called “strange” and “disappointing”.

Speaking on RTÉ radio’s Morning Ireland, the Archbishop said some churches in the diocese of Dublin are so small that they would not 50 people while others could fit 1,500.

“We’ve worked very hard to prepare churches – to put signage, to arrange stewarding, to ensure there is very little interaction and if you’ve got a church with 1,500 people and only 50 people are allowed to enter, it is surprising.

“We have to find a way in which you have some relationship between the size of the church and the number of people who will come.”

David Pierrepoint, Church of Ireland archdeacon of Dublin agreed with Dr Martin, pointing out that with some large churches, like Christchurch Cathedral it would be unfair to make “someone at the door with a clicker machine” telling people they could not enter once the figure of 50 had been reached.