Mr. Jim Breslin:

On the representation of Nursing Home Ireland and the HSE, the health and social care sector is a very large sector. When we put in place the preparedness structures for this pandemic, we did not seek to have a representative of every sector on the committees. We sought to put expertise in place and engage seriously with those experts from different sectors on an ongoing basis. As the Deputy noted, there has been very significant engagement with the nursing home sector, both by the Department and the HSE, and the record shared by the Department of 160 separate communications, which does not take account of phone calls late at night and so on, bears that out.

I accept that Nursing Homes Ireland wanted to be represented on those structures. A committee was set up specifically in respect of nursing homes, and while it might seem obvious that Nursing Homes Ireland should have been on it, it was set up to devise the temporary assistance scheme, that is, the financial scheme that benefits the sector. The view I took as Accounting Officer was that Nursing Homes Ireland should be consulted throughout that process, but due the design of it, it was not proper to have the beneficiaries of the scheme in the room.