Cabinet will today be updated on the progress of contingency plans in place in the event of a 'no deal' Brexit.

Planning for the outcome was prioritised following a previous meeting of the Cabinet in December.

A Government document has previously warned a no deal Brexit would be be highly disruptive and would have profound political, economic and legal implications for Ireland.

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A Chinese spacecraft has become the first to land on the far side of the moon, according to state media.

The lunar explorer Chang'e 4 touched down on Thursday morning Beijing time, the official China Central Television said.

Soon after landing, it transmitted the first "close range" images of the moon's far side - somewhere previous spacecraft have seen but never landed on.

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Every household could get a "carbon cheque" to compensate for a tax increase under government proposals.

The Taoiseach says there are no plans to increase carbon tax this year - but changes could be made to the levy in 2020.

Leo Varadkar says a "carbon dividend" would see those embracing a low-carbon lifestyle benefit more.

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Hundreds of thousands of US federal workers are still waiting to hear when they'll be paid, with a partial government shutdown now into its 12th day.

Democratic and Republican congressional leaders met with Donald Trump last night, but gave no indication of any progress.

The US President has demanded $5 billion towards border security and his controversial Mexico border wall, which his political rivals won't sign off.

Amid the continuing impasse, Democrats are set to formally take control of the House of Representatives today after their success in November's mid-term elections.

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The Luas website has been hacked, with the tram operator being held to ransom for one Bitcoin.

Anyone going onto the website this morning has been greeted with a message from the apparent hacker.

It's claimed the transport company was informed 'some time ago' that there were security holes, but there was no reply.