COVID-19 UPDATE: Sharp spike in deaths as 14 lose their lives in last 24 hours

A total of 36 people have now lost their lives to Covid-19 in the Republic of Ireland as 14 more people succumbed to the disease in the last 24 hours.
A further 294 new cases were confirmed to bring the number of 2,415 diagnosed cases of the coronavirus in the Republic.
Another two people with Covid-19 died in Northern Ireland meaning there are now 51 deaths on the country as a whole.