President Michael D Higgins has called for his inauguration ceremony to be delayed to allow people to commemorate the centenary of the end of the first world war.

The ceremony is due to be held on Sunday November 11th - which coincides with the centenary of the Armistice.

This afternoon President Higgins said he has written to the Taoiseach Leo Varadkar asking for the ceremony to moved from the morning to the evening.

A spokesperson for the president said: "The date of the inauguration coincides with the centenary of the Armistice which signalled the end of the first World War."

"The President, conscious of the desire of many Irish people to participate in morning commemoration ceremonies and of the invitations to Members of the Government to represent the State at ceremonies abroad, has asked for these special circumstances to be borne in mind in the arrangements."

He said the delay would help to "accommodate all of those who wish to mark the cessation of hostilities and to remember the Irish men and women and all those who lost their lives or were wounded during World War I."

President Higgins secured the highest number of votes in Irish presidential election history last Friday to win a second term in office.

The President won 822,566 first-preference votes - ensuring he was elected with 55.81% after the first round of counting on Saturday.