Ireland counts cost of lay-offs as coronavirus cases rise

DUBLIN/BELFAST (Reuters) - Irish authorities said on Thursday they had received 58,000 applications for a new emergency welfare payment for employees and self-employed people who have lost their jobs or had hours cut due to coronavirus.And asked during a news conference if as many as 400,000 people could become unemployed as a result of the crisis, Ireland's social protection minister Regina Doherty said: "it could be potentially as drastic (as that)".Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar has..