Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald won't be at a controversial sitting of the Dail today.

She says she is feeling under the weather and is taking all necessary precautions.

The Dáil will meet this afternoon for a three-hour session to debate the Coronavirus.

Still under the weather so I'm staying home and taking all necessary precautions. Won't be at Dail sitting tomorrow but it's in the capable hands of team Sinn Féin — Mary Lou McDonald (@MaryLouMcDonald) April 1, 2020

But a number of TDs have boycotted today's sitting saying that they should be supporting the 'stay at home' message.

There will be measures in place to allow social distancing - with no more than 30 per cent of TDs allowed to attend.

No party or grouping will be allowed to have more than two TDs in the Dáil chamber at any one time.

But the Labour Party says it disagrees with the decision to sit, their TDs are boycotting this afternoon's session - saying TDs should be supporting the stay at home message, rather than having non-essential gatherings.

Sinn Féin, on the other hand, has argued it's vital for the Dáil to sit during this time to provide some accountability to a caretaker government that is making massive decisions for the country.

The state's most senior civil servant Martin Fraser has issued a light rebuke to TDs in a letter to the Clerk of the Dáil.

He said everyone in the country has been asked to stay at home other than limited essential services, and he was sure that would be in the minds of TDs too.