Mr. Rory Fitzgerald:

No, they would not have relayed that information at that time. One of the interesting things during Covid-19, however, was that the release of the daily figures during the news between 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. resulted in a large spike in calls. There was huge anxiety then. We were telling people to limit their news intake because that was certainly fuelling and magnifying the issues they had.

Regarding other organisations, we tend to hear those mentioned later in the night, because we work right through the night and 24-7. Early in the morning, therefore, around 1 a.m. or 2 a.m., when people are at a low ebb, they tell us that we are the only organisation that they could talk to and that there were few other alternatives. The callers talk to us more about their problems rather than not being able to access services outside of 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.