David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I intend to be ruthless in how I put my questions, which are directed at the Minister for Health and the acting Chief Medical Officer. Unfortunately for the other witnesses, I do not have enough time to ask all the questions I would I like to ask. My questions for the Minister for Health are for him to answer because there are lines of demarcation, which I spoke about earlier.

I will first ask Dr. Glynn about the commentary on young people and the tone of some of it. There needs to be a much deeper appreciation of the impact that Covid-19 is having on young people, especially those of college age but also teenagers. I am very mindful of what form some of the social media commentary can take. Of course there are lapses and we see things that are unacceptable but a lot of good work is also being done by young people. I am deeply conscious of people going to college. There are issues around them not being able to socialise and having to attend college in a much different way, which will have an impact on mental health. There are stresses for children going to school, particularly leaving certificate students. There is youth unemployment. Crucially, social outlets and social opportunities have been turned off like a tap. We need to ensure we give opportunities to these young people. How does Dr. Glynn believe we can change the tone of the commentary relating to young people? When will we reach a point where we can give young people more social opportunities?

In the context of the five-level plan, Dublin is in level 3 which imposes restrictions on what social opportunities are available to people. The plan promised that we could live with the virus. Will Dr. Glynn speak to young people today on that issue? I ask him not to tell them what they cannot do but what they can do in their social life. That is an important distinction to make and Dr. Glynn has an opportunity to do that today at this meeting.