Ms Paula Donohoe:

I thank the Deputy for his question. As a provider, the information has come slowly in dribs in drabs on a backdrop of misinformation in the media so it has proved extremely problematic. Are we getting clarity? We are, very slowly. We would have liked to see the information come through a lot faster. We would like to have had supports in the form of helplines, which were closed down through this entire phase and are still closed. We would have liked, as providers, to have had access to helplines operated by Pobal and the Department of Children and Youth Affairs, none of which was made available to us during this time of Covid.