For the Stormont Executive, yesterday was all about putting on a united front and appealing to people across Northern Ireland to do their bit to reduce the spread of infection.
The divisions of last week were put to one side, in public anyway.
Having railed against the policy of mandatory Covid passports, which he described as 'divisive', and taken a verbal swipe at the Department of Health, the first minister yesterday adopted a very different tone.
Standing alongside Michelle O'Neill and Robin Swann, Paul Givan said the executive was "very much united" in asking the public to play its part in trying to curb the spread of Covid-19.
The fact that the three ministers stood together was perhaps an acknowledgment that rifts and rancour do not help when it comes to delivering a public health message that requires enormous buy-in from all citizens.
That should be obvious by now but unfortunately there are some elected representatives who appear unable to take full cognisance of their responsibilities to wider society.
While the outcome of the executive deliberations this week had been well flagged up, particularly in terms of the work from home where possible advice, it is clear that no single intervention on its own will be enough to keep case numbers down.
We are also not entirely back where we were a year ago, when infection rates were surging and we ended up with severe restrictions over the festive period.
This year we have the vaccines, with Mr Swann urging people to get their jabs, including the booster. This is absolutely crucial.
But we also need to revisit the fundamental advice that was essential last year and remains just as important now. Wear a mask, wash hands, maintain social distance - we know these steps work but regrettably compliance has waned.
The use of face coverings is regarded as vital to reducing the spread of the virus and while there has been much discussion about enforcement recently, it should not require the threat of a fine for people to do what is right.
There are other steps that people are being asked to take, including limiting social contacts and ensuring good ventilation if meeting indoors.
Quite how this advice will work in settings such as nightclubs is far from clear.
However, we are once again at a critical juncture in this pandemic and if we act now we can hopefully avoid more stringent measures over Christmas.
