Expect an announcement Friday evening.

An Taoiseach Michéal Martin is expected to announce the end of many Covid-19 hospitality restrictions following advice from the National Public Health Emergency Team.

In a letter to Health Minister Stephen Donnelly on Thursday night, Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan is understood to have given the green light to the Government to extend pub and restaurant opening hours and lift restrictions on COVID certs.

Live music, sports, theatres and nightclubs will all be back on the cards too and a timetable is expected to be agreed on Friday with an announcement likely at around 6pm.

Mask wearing will still be required in crowded places and the rules on self-isolating if you have tested positive for COVID-19 (seven days and five days for vaccinated close contacts with no symptoms) will remain in place as the highly contagious Omicron variant of the virus continues to circulate.

According to the latest figures, the number of patients with Covid-19 in hospital is 896, down 14 from Wednesday.

Of those, 90 patients are being treated in ICU.

Main image: Impala Cork