Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for his question. It is good to be back before the committee and it is doing excellent work, as always. On the recognition issue, the Government has on several occasions said we believe some recognition is appropriate and warranted in respect of the extraordinary efforts of so many people across society while we have been living with Covid-19 during the past 18 months. At the very front line of all that are our healthcare workers. The Government has acknowledged that aspect. It is important we approach this in a considered and careful way. Many people across society, in our health service certainly but also in other front-line public services, went above and beyond while doing their jobs during the past 18 months. Many of those people took considerable personal risk to protect the rest of us. The Irish people, and those on the front line specifically, have been nothing short of extraordinary during that time.

In addition, we all have a renewed sense of appreciation for the roles played by so many people in different parts of the private sector. I refer to people who are cleaners and those who collect our refuse, for example, as well as those who work in our retail, tourism and hospitality sectors. All those people took risks and went out on the front line in challenging and difficult circumstances. I raised this issue yesterday in a pre-budget meeting with representatives from the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, ICTU. I asked for their views, and they agreed with my assessment that what we need on this issue is a collaborative approach. Therefore, we will consult the social partners in depth to devise an agreed way forward that will allow us to deliver an appropriate form of recognition and that acknowledges and commemorates the fact that more than 5,000 died from Covid-19 in Ireland. We must do that in a way that also expresses gratitude to all those on the front line.

I am conscious, as I said last week, that solidarity has been the hallmark of our approach to Covid-19. As we exit the worst of the pandemic, we hope, it is important we maintain that social solidarity while at the same time finding a way to provide some special recognition of all those who have gone above and beyond in the course of their work. There is an industrial relations context here, as the members will be aware. Claims were lodged by the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation, INMO, and other unions representing healthcare workers. Those claims have made their way through the Workplace Relations Commission, WRC, and the Labour Court issued a recommendation last week. Its essence was to request the Government to engage intensively and to bring forward a proposal in the coming weeks. That process is under way and we will bring this issue to a conclusion in the coming weeks.