The Chief Medical Officer is appealing to people not to attend demonstrations this weekend.

A Black Lives Matter protest is due to get underway at the US embassy in Dublin this afternoon.

It has been organised in solidarity with demonstrations against police brutality across the US following the killing of George Floyd.

Protests are also planned in Cork, Galway and Sligo.

Dr Tony Holohan said he understands the motivations behind the protests but warned that it is not the time to be holding mass gatherings here.

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People living in nursing homes could soon see their relatives for the first time since March.

Indoor visits of up to two people are to be allowed from June 15th.

The visits must be pre-arranged and last no longer than half-an-hour, once a week.

A further 28 cases of the virus were confirmed in the Republic yesterday, bringing the total to 25,163.

The death toll stands at 1,670, after a further 7 people died.

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An expert group examining the Direct Provision system is calling for everyone in the system to be allowed to work in Ireland three months after they arrive here.

In its latest briefing note, the group also warned that the State is currently paying private contractors €200m to run Direct Provision centres around the country.

It is calling for purpose-built housing to be on public lands for asylum seekers to live in while their application is being processed.

It is also calling for the process to be sped up through increased resources and the use of ‘IT solutions.’

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In the US, the National Football League (NFL) has admitted it was wrong for not listening to players who were highlighting racism in recent years.

In a statement, the NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said all players were no encouraged to “speak out and peacefully protest.”

He did not mention Colin Kaepernick, whose decision to kneel during the national anthem in August 2016 kickstarted the movement.

Kaepernick has been a free agent since 2017 and last year settled a grievance against the NFL, accusing it of colluding to keep him out of the league.

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A key round of talks on government formation continue today.

Transport, mental health and drug policy are among the issues on the agenda for negotiators from Fine Gael, Fianna Fail and the Greens.

The party leaders are also expected to meet tomorrow to iron out any outstanding problems.

It's expected a draft programme for government will be finalised by next week.