No further coronavirus-related deaths were recorded by the Department of Health in NI on Thursday. The total remains at 556
The total number of confirmed positive cases of the virus in Northern Ireland now stands at 5,815, an increase of 16 from Wednesday
Irish prime minister Micheál Martin is visiting Northern Ireland to meet the first and deputy first ministers and Stormont parties to discuss the response of both governments to the pandemic
The UK's Department of Health reported 85 additional deaths, bringing total deaths to 45,053
One further Covid-19-linked death was reported on Thursday in the Republic of Ireland. Death toll there stands at 1,749. There were 21 new cases
We're going to end our live page coverage for the day here.
Stay with the BBC News website, external, and we'll be back with more developments in the morning.
Thank you for your company on this bright and sunny Thursday.
Image source, PA MediaAs we come to the end of our coronavirus coverage for Wednesday let's recap the main developments of the day in NI.
Image source, ReutersEncouraging early results from clinical trials have raised hopes for an effective coronavirus vaccine.
Studies in the US and UK suggest several experimental vaccines produce a good immune response in volunteers without serious side-effects.
Nearly two dozen coronavirus vaccines are in clinical trials while another 140 are in early development.
But some scientists are calling for volunteers to be exposed to the virus to accelerate research.
Image source, PA MediaEveryone in Northern Ireland with symptoms of coronavirus is now eligible for testing, external- with children under the age of five included from today.
The Department of Health has estimated that the current R number in Northern Ireland now stands at 0.5 - 1.0
The R-number, or reproduction number, is the average number of people that one coronavirus-infected person will pass the virus on to.
Louise Cullen
BBC News NI
The Public Health Agency has identified a cluster of Covid-19 cases in the Limavady area.
The agency says it is linking them to a social gathering in a private or residential setting.
In a statement, the agency said: "Testing and contact tracing is being carried out, to identify anyone who may be potentially affected and to help prevent any further spread".
The agency says with lockdown restrictions being eased clusters like this "are be expected".
Image source, AFPAll new confirmed cases are monitored by the PHA to identify potential clusters, outbreaks or linked cases, with infection control advice offered where appropriate.
Anyone concerned that they have symptoms of coronavirus – a raised temperature, a new continuous cough, or a change in their sense of taste or smell – can now be tested.
Tests can be booked at a number of sites around Northern Ireland by visiting www.pha.site/coronavirus
Lenders are set to reduce the availability of mortgages, loans and other credit in the coming weeks despite greater demand from consumers.
Mortgage and loan providers have told the Bank of England that the supply of these products will fall in the summer months owing to coronavirus pressures.
It comes as the gradual reopening of the economy and the housing market means people will want to borrow more.
One commentator said the credit squeeze was tighter than a decade ago.
Image source, PA MediaFor the first time since reporting of them began, the number of care homes in Northern Ireland dealing with an active outbreak of Covid-19 is in single figures.
According to the Department of Health’s latest dashboard figures, nine homes currently have a confirmed outbreak and 13 are suspected.
More than 150 confirmed and suspected outbreaks have been closed.
Image source, Executive Official PhotographerMicheál Martin was in Stormont meeting the first and deputy first ministers about the two governments' response to coronavirus.
This is the first time since becoming taoiseach (Irish PM) that Mr Martin has been in Northern Ireland.
Mr Martin is also due to meet representatives from UUP, SDLP and Alliance later.
Read more on this story here
As we have just reported, there have been 16 new cases of coronavirus recorded in Northern Ireland.
These were in the following council areas:
No Covid-19 related deaths have been recorded by Northern Ireland’s Department of Health in the past 24 hours, which means the number of deaths from the virus remains at 556.
The department’s daily figures are mostly comprised of hospital deaths, where a patient had previously tested positive for the virus.
The latest figures on the department’s dashboard show the total number of confirmed positive cases of the virus now stands at 5,815, an increase of 16 from yesterday.
One patient with Covid-19 is currently being treated in intensive care in a Northern Ireland hospital.
If you wear glasses and have tried wearing a face mask you will know the two things can be a tricky combination - with the mask causing your breath to mist up the lenses.
Here are three simple tips for stopping the steam.
(Don't worry, one of them isn't 'wear contact lenses'.)
How to stop your glasses steaming up with a mask on
The head of the NI Retail Consortium says that Covid-19 is not solely responsible for Eason closing down.
Eason announced on Wednesday that it would not be reopening its seven NI stores which closed on 23 March due to the coronavirus, putting 144 jobs at risk.
Speaking on BBC's Talkback programme, Aodhan Connolly said: "Covid-19 has maybe been the straw that broke the camel's back, but what it has done is accelerated the pace of change.
"There’s been 10 years change in 13 weeks, but we need to look at the fundamentals. Business rates are antiquated in Northern Ireland, they're a millstone round the neck of retailers."
Mr Connolly warned that work needs to be done to get shoppers to "spend their time as well as their money" on the high street or "retail is going to shrink".
Reopening pubs now could "materially add to the possibility of a second wave" of coronavirus in Ireland, the country's health minister has said.
Stephen Donnelly made the remarks on RTÉ's Morning Ireland programme, saying the Irish government is prioritising the reopening of schools and healthcare facilities amid the pandemic.
The Republic's 'R' - or Reproduction -number currently sits between 1.2 and 1.8 - something which has the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) "very concerned", he said.
The minister said if it is 1.8, within three weeks there could be up to 160 cases of Covid-19 per day.
Image source, Getty Images"We are essentially prioritising schools, healthcare facilities, the economy over the accelerated opening of the pubs," Mr Donnelly said.
"This was not done lightly. We really do understand that there are publicans waiting and hoping that they would be able to open on Monday.
"But the public health advice is were we to open now them right now it could materially add to the possibility of a second wave and that's just not a risk we could take."
Mr Donnelly added the wearing of face masks in shops is advised from now.
A Londonderry gym owner has said lockdown has given a lot of people time to "pause and reflect" on their health choices.
Kevin Harkin said during lockdown he has seen "a lot more people out walking and saw more people on bikes than ever before".
"The lockdown forced people to take a look at their health and maybe start prioritising it more than before," Mr Harkin told BBC Radio Foyle.
He said for himself personally, lockdown was a great opportunity to spend more time at home with his children and press pause on the "early starts in the gym and late finishes".
He stressed the importance for people to "strike a balance" and evaluate what is most important to them.
"Find what you value most," he told the programme.
Ireland's minister for further and higher education has said the decision not to proceed with phase 4 of easing lockdown in the Republic will increase the chances of children being able return to school in September.
Yesterday, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said concerns over a rise in the number of coronavirus cases in the country meant some re-opening measures would have to be delayed.
Today Simon Harris said he believes it would have been grossly irresponsible to ignore public health advice and move forward with phase 4 in spite of "knowing that we have a huge body of work to do as a country to get our kids back to school and to get our learners and third level students back as well".
Image source, PA MediaMr Harris said it was down to "every single one of us now as citizens to give our children the very best chance now by keeping the virus as low as possible".
He said he agreed with the taoiseach that getting children back to school was a major priority.
"I've seen in my own constituency and with family and friends the negative impact that it has on a child being out of school and that goes well beyond learning," he added.
A framework document for the reopening of further and higher education in Ireland is expected to be published later this month
From Monday, dentists are expected to move into the next phase of operations, with the return of what are called aerosol-generating procedures (AGPs).
These types of procedures involve droplets being thrown into the air, which creates the potential for Covid-19 to spread.
While it should mean the return of most routine dental work, an issue has arisen around the availability and affordability of the right kind of PPE to make this possible.
Image source, Press AssociationRichard Graham the chair of British Dental Association Northern Ireland, told the Nolan Show about the difficulty of sourcing the equipment.
"One of our members, a friend of mine, said to me he was trying to source PPE and unicorns, he had a lead on the unicorns but he didn’t think he was going to be able to get the PPE," he said.
"The problem is to the level of the PPE that we need to use," he said.
He said the type of PPE available to dentists could be used for things like "ordinary examinations, extractions, temporary fillings" but would not be suitable for anything involving a drill.
The correct type of PPE was "really expensive", Mr Graham said, and the health service had informed the sector it was not able to source the equipment for dentists.
He said the cost of the PPE could be £30 to £40 per patient.
"Most of the treatments that we get in the health service are less than that, so it doesn’t really make a lot of economic sense," Mr Graham added.
Nobel laureates are among scientists calling for volunteers to be exposed to coronavirus after receiving a vaccine to see if it offers protection.
They signed an open letter to the head of the US National Institutes of Health, saying these "challenge trials" could accelerate vaccine development.
The Oxford University Covid-19 vaccine programme's director said such studies should be "feasible and informative".
Image source, PA MediaThere are now 23 coronavirus vaccines in clinical trials around the world.
The only way we will know if any of them works is if enough volunteers are subsequently exposed to coronavirus in their daily life and do not get infected.
That could take well into next year, given that many studies are being conducted in countries where infection rates are falling.
Derry and Strabane District Council is reminding parents with small children to follow safety guidelines when attending local play parks.
Council recommends:
Allow X content?
This article contains content provided by X. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read X’s cookie policy, external and privacy policy, external before accepting. To view this content choose ‘accept and continue’.
Passengers entering the UK from dozens of countries no longer have to quarantine.
More than 50 countries - including many popular holiday spots - now pose ''a reduced risk'' from coronavirus, the government says.
The list focuses on countries in Europe, island nations around the world including the Caribbean, and countries further east - including Vietnam, Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Australia and New Zealand.
Image source, AFPArrivals are exempt from quarantine, external if they arrive in England, Wales and Northern Ireland from:
Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Barbados, Belgium, Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba, Croatia, Curaçao, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominica, Faroe Islands, Fiji, Finland, France, French Polynesia, Germany, Greece, Greenland, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macau, Malta, Mauritius, Monaco, Netherlands, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Réunion, San Marino, Seychelles, South Korea, Spain, St Barthélemy, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Pierre and Miquelon, Switzerland, Taiwan, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, Vatican City, Vietnam.
The 14 British Overseas Territories are also exempt.
Read more about potential travel destinations here.