The taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) has been invited to the White House by US President Donald Trump to celebrate St Patrick's Day next month. The meeting is scheduled to take place on 12 March, five days before the Irish public holiday.

The White House’s move to take control of which outlets participate in the press pool is a break from a century of tradition with the White House Correspondents’ Association.

The White House said on Tuesday it would decide which media organizations participate in the press pool that covers the president, wresting control away from the group of journalists that has done so for decades.