Details have been revealed of the next Irish Census, which will take place on April 18th 2021.

The Central Statistics Office (CSO) says it will include eight new questions - including about renewable energy, smoking, volunteering and childcare.

Several other questions will also be updated - including those on religion, disability, ethnic group and the Irish language.

And it will give people an option to create a time capsule: to write a confidential message of their choice, which will be securely stored for 100 years.

The make-up of the next census was decided after a public consultation between October and November 2017.

It invited submissions from members of the public, interest groups, Government departments, local authorities and other public bodies.

More than 400 submissions were made to the CSO.

The submissions were then considered by a Census Advisory Group (CAG), which agreed on the questions to be tested in a Census Pilot Survey.

The pilot was carried out in September 2018 across seven counties chosen to be representative of the national population.

More than 10,000 households took part.

Cormac Halpin is a senior statistician: "The value of the statistical information provided by the census cannot be overestimated.

"It drives policy, targets services where needed and informs our decisions at a time of continuing social change.

"There is an international element to the next census as every other EU member state will also be required to carry out a census in 2021.

"With less than two years to go, the preparations are well underway and securing government approval for the date and questionnaire marks a major milestone for Census 2021."