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

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue, as did a number of his colleagues. As I said earlier, it is a complex and sensitive issue. The Government acknowledges that there is a need to provide appropriate recognition for the incredible efforts by so many people across our society and economy over the past 18 months. We will strive to be as fair as we can. I also acknowledge that people look at the question of fairness through their own lens and perspective and we do not always get a consensus on what is fair. It is the intention that this matter will be dealt with after the budget, so not on budget day, as I said.

The Minister for Finance, Deputy Paschal Donohoe, and I met the Irish Congress of Trade Unions yesterday to discuss ICTU's pre-budget submission. I took the opportunity to raise the issue with ICTU and it is fair to say that it broadly agrees with the approach that there needs to be collaboration and consultation. I mentioned that we have the Labour Employer Economic Forum, which is a good forum in which the Government meets representatives of the employer bodies and trade unions. That is a good forum for us to meet and discuss this issue further. The LEEF will meet in October and the intention is to deal with this matter in the coming weeks. We do not want it to drag on for months and months.

We also have the issue of a Labour Court recommendation in respect of a specific set of claims lodged by the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation and other healthcare workers. I am sure the leaders of the relevant unions will demonstrate good faith and allow some time for us to work through the issue in its broader sense.

The Deputy touched on one point that highlights the complexity of all of this. This is the issue of nursing homes where, unfortunately and tragically, many people passed away with Covid-19. The vast majority of our nursing homes are private facilities and the people working in them are not public sector employees. We have to ask what are the tools at the Government's disposal to provide appropriate recognition for people in that category. They were on the front line and at the coalface of dealing with the worst of Covid-19. That highlights the complexity and difficulty with this issue but we will deal with it. We will not shirk from it. There is a need for us to provide special recognition in as fair a manner as we can. The best chance of achieving that outcome is by adopting a collaborative approach with wider society, including trade union representatives and the employer bodies.