The head of Irish Water’s parent company, Ervia (formerly Bord Gáis), has confirmed he is to "divest" himself of more than 400,000 shares in a company which makes money from installing water meters — but insisted everything he had done is "above board".

The Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) union said it reached a tentative deal with General Motors, leaving Chrysler as the only Detroit carmaker that has not agreed to a new labour deal.