There were 657 new cases of Covid-19 confirmed in Ireland yesterday, not including another 411 old cases confirmed by a German lab. 38 more people died and the news broke of two healthcare workers from St Luke's Hospital in Kilkenny who also lost their lives to the virus.

Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have published a joint framework document for a potential coalition which outlines 10 key “missions” for the next government. The document says the “overriding focus” of the two parties is to improve the “wellbeing” of Irish people and society. However, the only other party who have already said they're willing to go into government is Sinn Féin, who the other two already ruled out.

This news comes as minister Paschal Donohoe said there may be pay cuts for Cabinet members as the coronavirus crisis continues. The statement was spurred by New Zealand's prime minister Jacinda Ardern who said she and her ministers will take a 20pc pay cut for six months in solidarity with people who have lost jobs.

The number of people unemployed or receiving some sort of emergency payment amid the Covid-19 economic crisis here is in touching distance of one million - just over four weeks after the start of the lockdown. Patricia King said that "Increasing the wage replacement rate from 70pc to 85pc on earnings up to €24,400 and the value of the subsidy to €350 on earnings between €24,400 and €31,000 goes a distance in doing what we asked of Government and, importantly, protects jobs and the worker-employer relationship during the emergency to facilitate a rapid recovery.”

In the health sector, existing HSE staff can now be re-deployed on a voluntary basis to work in private nursing homes affected by the coronavirus pandemic under an agreement reached between the health authority and trade unions. The new agreement says moving existing HSE staff to private nursing homes should be “an absolute last resort having exhausted all other options and ensured that the private provider has exhausted every available avenue to source staff”.

Over in France, Amazon is going to temporarily close its six warehouses there after a court ordered it to stop all but essential deliveries. An internal document sent to unions yesterday said the closures would last from Thursday until at least 20 April, and added it will use a state partial-unemployment scheme to pay the 10,000 workers employed at the warehouses.

And finally, Cork City Fire Brigade has hopped on the latest internet trend and brought a smile to everyone's faces with their interpretation of this TikTok dance.