Vaccine for under-40s
Ireland’s Covid-19 vaccine rollout will slow down when it comes to vaccinating people in their 30s, according to the chief executive of the HSE.
Paul Reid said the vaccine rollout is reaching a “strong peak”, with 320,000 doses set to be administered this week and around 300,000 next week.
People aged between 35 and 39 will be able to register for their vaccines from Sunday, but Mr Reid has warned that this will be “a slower age group to move through”.
Meanwhile, pharmacies around the country joined the vaccine rollout effort today. People aged over 50 who have not applied via the HSE portal are able to receive the Johnson & Johnson jab at a participating pharmacy.
DUP disarray
The DUP appears to be in internal disarray after a significant majority of its elected representatives opposed the new party leader’s decision to nominate a First Minister in the North.
Edwin Poots, who succeeded the ousted Arlene Foster last month, is now facing questions about his own leadership future after he proceeded with the nomination despite the internal opposition.
Mr Poots nominated Paul Givan as First Minister while Sinn Féin renominated Michelle O’Neill as Deputy First Minister at a specially convened Assembly sitting.
Indoor dining legal challenge
The Restaurants Association of Ireland has applied to the High Court seeking leave to challenge distinctions made between indoor dining in non-hotel commercial restaurants and indoor dining within hotels.
While restaurants that have space for outdoor dining were recently allowed to reopen as part of a loosening of Covid restrictions, others have to wait until July 5th when the ban on indoor dining is due to be lifted.
Garda Colm Horkan tributes
The family of the late Det Garda Colm Horkan have said “life will never be the same” as they remembered him as a “kind, thoughtful and a selflessly loyal gentleman” on the first anniversary of his death.
In a statement they said the family and friends of Mr Horkan lost a “dear friend” last year when he was “murdered in the most brutal way that anyone can imagine”.
Garda Horkan (49) was shot dead in the town of Castlerea, Co Roscommon when he intervened in an incident unfolding close to the town’s Garda station.
Dublin quays death
An investigation is under way after a man was found dead in Dublin city centre, gardaí said.
The body of the man, in his 30s, was discovered on the boardwalk area of Ormond Quay Lower at about 6.20am on June 4th.
Gardaí are now appealing for anyone with information to contact them, particularly anyone who was in the Ormond Quay area between 6pm on Thursday, June 3rd and 6.20am on Friday, June 4th.
