The Health Minister Stephen Donnelly has moved to clarify remarks he made which suggested that talks were ongoing between the Education Minister and teaching unions on schools re-opening.
In a comment posted on Twitter, Minister Donnelly explained that the talks "had concluded" and the government "intends on making an announcement" on school re-openings after Cabinet this afternoon.
His suggestion on RTÉ's Claire Byrne Live last night that talks were ongoing - less than 24-hours before the Cabinet was due to make a major announcement on the topic - prompted the Labour education spokesman Aodhan O'Riordain to characterise the government as "dysfunctional." A spokesperson from the Department of Education said later that talks on public