Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said Ireland is "not in a position" to restore the Common Travel Area just yet because the advice from the NPHET is that there are "real concerns" about the prevalence of the India variant in Britain.

The new leader of the DUP has said that relationships with the Irish Government are "really, really bad" and claimed it would "starve" the people of Northern Ireland of medicines and the food on their table.

The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation has called for an urgent meeting with the HSE to discuss the implications for second dose vaccinations of healthcare workers.

Germany has for the first time recognised it committed genocide in Namibia during its colonial occupation, with the government promising financial support worth more than €1 billion to aid projects in the African nation.

The alleged bomb threat cited by Belarus as the reason why it diverted a plane to Minsk before arresting a journalist on board was sent after the plane was redirected, the email provider said.

The latest update on deliveries of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine mean it is unlikely that the Government will hit either of its June targets, explains Mark Coughlan.

The decision to allow hotels and bed and breakfast reopen and have indoor dining in June is "more a practical one than a scientific one", the Tánaiste has said.

EU agriculture ministers will return next month to the thorny issue of reforming the bloc's vast farming subsidies after a meeting this week failed to produce agreement, officials said today.

Temperatures could hit their highest levels so far this year over the weekend, Met Éireann has said.

A car discovered by divers close to Hugh Coveney Pier in Crosshaven, Co Cork has been has been confirmed as the car of 23-year-old fisherman Barry Coughlan who disappeared in 2004.

Follow all the latest developments as a further easing of restrictions is due to be announced later today.

An Italian drug trafficker who had escaped arrest for 15 years was finally caught after he returned to Rome for his daughter's 23rd birthday, police said.

Former Manchester United footballer Ryan Giggs is due in court accused of deliberately headbutting his ex-girlfriend and controlling her throughout their relationship.

Jailed Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai is among eight democracy activists who have been handed new prison sentences for attending protests on the 70th anniversary of the founding of communist China that were followed by a sweeping crackdown.

Tonnes of charred plastic pellets from a burning container ship have washed ashore near Sri Lanka's capital as an international effort to salvage the vessel dragged into a ninth day.

Ahead of this evening's announcement on the further reopening of society, Chambers Ireland has called on the Government to publish clear reopening timelines for businesses.

A 38-year-old man has been charged in connection with the barricade incident last Tuesday night during which two gardaí were shot and injured.

Sweden's government has announced a plan to ease restrictions designed to curb the spread of Covid-19, starting on 1 June but without a firm date for a complete reopening.

The Department of Health has been notified of 436 new confirmed cases of Covid-19. The number of patients with the disease in ICU is 39 in ICU, down two since yesterday.

A 51-year-old fishmonger has been jailed for life for the murder of his former partner in front of their six-year-old daughter over two and a half years ago.