Irish government sets out lockdown exit plan for restaurants to open in June

The Irish government has laid out a roadmap to reopening that will see restaurants and pubs open under strict guidelines by the end of summer.

However, Ireland's taoiseach Leo Varadkar warned that a second spike in Covid-19 cases could derail the timetable.

He said: "Unfortunately the risk of a second wave of the virus is ever present. So we can only move from one phase to the next if the virus stays under control between each phase. And there is a risk that we'd have to go back a phase if that happens.

"In any scenario, at least until we have a vaccine or effective treatment, there will be a long-term need for physical distancing, good hand hygiene, respiratory hygiene, regular cleaning and for people to stay at home and isolate if they are sick."

The plan details five phases of reopening, with the first restrictions lifted on 18 May.

The third phase would include the opening of cafés and restaurants on 29 June, but with strict social distancing and enhanced cleaning requirements.

Pubs, bars and nightclubs are the last businesses to reopen under the plan, which was published this weekend. They would be included in phase five of the lifting of measures, to be enacted on 10 August.

Slight changes were made for the next two weeks, with people able to travel up to 5km from their homes for exercise and the over-70s advised they can leave their homes if they can avoid all contact with others.

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