Michael D Higgins said at the ploughing championship yesterday that the beef talks agreement is "well worth building on and supporting." He indicated that the agreement may not have delivered everything everyone wants but he said "it is an achievement in itself."

In another address at Dublin Castle, the president also called for new regulations or enforcement measures to prevent workers from being exploited by a “race to the bottom” in new forms of working. Marking the centenary of the International Labour Organisation, he said the world was witnessing precarious employment, contract working and a casualisation of labour.

The EU's order for Apple to pay €13bn in back taxes to Ireland “defies reality and common sense”, the company said today as it and the Government launched a two-pronged legal challenge against the 2016 ruling. Meanwhile, a lawyer for Apple has rejected claims by the European Commission that its alleged sweetheart tax deal with Ireland was partly designed to give the iPhone maker a boost in exchange for creating jobs in Cork.

The head of the representative body for Ireland’s seven universities has said that funding issues facing third level institutions will get “considerably worse” unless there is a significant step-up in investment.

More Budget 2020 speculation as Brexit is set to be a key focus, but the row over carbon tax is expected to be a close second.

And finally, today's Zen is just a quick video of some dancers getting creative with siri.