Pauline O'Reilly (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank all of our guests. It is good to see some of them for the second time this week. It is also good to see Professor Ó hÓgartaigh. As I said earlier in the week, I was on the údarás myself, albeit briefly. I will ask a couple of quite specific questions but first I will thank all of the staff in all of the institutions. The last couple of years have been incredibly difficult. As has quite rightly been said, this is not a reopening but a return to a safe environment. The terminology used may in some way indicate that people have forgotten the great deal of work that has been going on in the background. The realities of third level education have been quite invisible to a number of people who are not in touch with them. We are concerned about the students, their experiences and their mental health. I agree with an awful lot of what Senator Malcolm Byrne said earlier. I am anxious to hear whether we have any indication as to the impact on those students not only in terms of their educational attainment but also in terms of drop-out rates because it was flagged early on, perhaps by Professor Ó hÓgartaigh, that we may see fairly high drop-out rates. Has that been the reality?

The other specific questions I wish to ask relate to ventilation. This issue has been brought up by a couple of people. It seems that the witnesses are saying that ventilation systems will have to be adjusted. What does that mean? What adjustments are being considered? Staff are concerned because they need to feel safe in their working environment. Are CO2 monitors being considered to ensure transparency for university staff and students? I will ask the witnesses to answer those questions briefly before I come back in to ask another one or two.