The Government's reopening plan includes relaxation of the two-metre social distancing rule in workplaces and booster jabs for vulnerable groups

A new ECDC report says that requirements for testing and quarantine for travel could also be waived or adjusted for those who have received their Covid-19 jabs

Call for adequate planning and consultation to ensure people with disabilities have their say

It was as if, yesterday, the weather gods colluded with Government spin doctors to show that things could be far more challenging than they already are.

Declining cases do not present the full picture as close contacts are not being tested, health officials have said

Anger over vaccine progress and failure to track incoming visitors

I want to start this morning with the story of John Snow and the infamous water pump in Broad Street, which takes us back to nineteenth-century London.

Shoppers will spend £2bn more in supermarkets in the quarter to December 26, with some 5m people who normally travel abroad for Christmas staying in the country

The public is urged to keep their social contacts to an absolute minimum as Covid-19 continues to rapidly increase across the country.

The importance of maintaining a two-metre social distance with all close contacts is graphically illustrated by the revelation that one Covid-19 case inadvertently infected another 29 different people over a three-week period.

The latest data shows that Donegal is the worst affected county in the country.

The acting Chief Medical Officer has warned the situation with Covid-19 will continue deteriorate unless everyone plays their part to stop its spread.

Our health experts aren’t moving anything. They only want to kill a virus that doesn’t care how many of us it kills

Senator says it is 'completely unacceptable' that industry and health authorities did not inform the local community of such a major cluster.

National Public Health Emergency Team discuss putting Dublin into 'Covid Level 3' with further added restrictions

Paul Reid made an urgent and direct appeal for everyone to take stock of the current rise in Covid-19 cases, which is beginning to impact on older citizens

For those who have been identified as a close contact of a confirmed case the quarantine period remains 14 days.

Dr Martin Feeley called the current restrictions "draconian" and said they were no longer justified.

Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan has said that he believes testing should be extended into the travel area, but as part of a coordinated approach across Europe.

The chair of the CAO and deputy president of NUI Galway, Professor Pól Ó Dochartaigh has said that third level students should consider not returning home at weekends to stop the spread of Covid-19.

The Government should not impose a national lockdown if the number of Covid-19 cases continues to rise. That is according to the World Health Organisation (WHO) which says the measure should only be used in extreme circumstances.

People need to plan ahead for a Covid-19 Christmas and Halloween by "choosing their friends wisely", public health chiefs have urged.

A crucial meeting is taking place this afternoon between government ministers, sporting bodies, and the acting Chief Medical Officer.

Alan Kelly has called on the data commissioner to closely examine a new law requiring restaurants and pubs serving food to record all individual food orders and keep the information for 28 days.

Meelick National School in Clare closed yesterday while rooms in the Kerry secondary school have been disinfected

No more than six people are allowed at a table in restaurants and cafés from now on and a record must be kept of what customers order. Fáilte Ireland has updated its guidelines for the industry to stop the spread of Covid-19.

The Justice Minister will now consult with the Attorney General

Sinn Féin’s housing spokesperson Eoin Ó Broin has said teachers and school principals are being asked to make public health decisions about children who have returned to school.

Donal O'Keeffe, CEO of the Licensed Vintners Association said publicans welcomed the new powers but added that the vast majority of pubs were obeying the rules.

A senior member of the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) is hopeful that restrictions on family gatherings over Christmas can be avoided. A maximum of six people indoors and 15 outdoors is currently allowed under public health rules.

Both Skerries Harps and Skerries Town FC have suspended all club activity as a precaution.

Immunology expert Professor Kingston Mills has said he does not understand why 500 spectators could not attend the forthcoming Leinster versus Saracens rugby game in the Aviva Stadium as the risks were “fairly minimal.

The Health Minister now says he does not want to fine people for throwing house parties with more than six guests. Stephen Donnelly says the threat of jail time or a €2,500 fine allowed under the 1947 Health Act is "completely disproportionate".

A ban on alcohol at music events is being considered by government as a way of allowing them resume. The Arts Minister is meeting with campaigners today to examine what options could revive the sector and still keep within Covid guidelines.

What had happened on Saturday night was not representative of what happens in Kerry, he told RTÉ radio’s Morning Ireland.

The union for mid-ranking Gardaí says it is concerned officers will be given unworkable legislation in the government's push to crack down on house parties.

The social and educational needs of our students are at stake. Everyone wants to go back. For six months we have waited, the plan is not fair, it is not clear, and it is not safe, writes Anthony Dowling. 

Wedding guests will be required to wear masks on the dance floor and physical distancing must apply at all times, according to new guidelines. Fáilte Ireland said the function area must be self-contained and there can only be one event per area.

Dr Ronan Glynn and Paul Reid warn that unless people start making more effort to reduce their social interactions cases will rise. 

Dara Calleary, and about 80 others including a number of TDs and Senators, attended the event on Wednesday night in Galway's Station House Hotel

As with all natural phenomena, the trends that have come with the coronavirus pandemic vary from the apparently simple to the more complex.

School buses for secondary school students will not run at full capacity for the coming year as previously planned by the Department of Education.

Students, teachers and parents need clear, concise information, not roundabout answers, writes Jess Casey.

There are also 54 new Covid-19 cases confirmed as of midnight Wednesday.