John Brady (Wicklow, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The ambassadors are very welcome. They gave very informative opening statements, which are much appreciated. I commend their countries ON all they have done so far. Countries opening up their borders when a humanitarian crisis is still unfolding is a testament to them. What Polish and Romanian nationals living here in Ireland as new Irish have done in supporting the effort is also commendable.

There is so much goodwill in the Irish response. The people sending high heels were well meaning. People want to do something. They do not know what they have to do but they want to do it. We are hearing stories of children selling cakes and buns and raising thousands of euro. There is so much goodwill there and it is just a case of directing people to the right thing to do. The message is getting out that cash and money is what is needed. The organisations on the ground know exactly what is needed and that message is now getting out to people. As we speak, there are local people in my county of Wicklow filling up vans with medical supplies. I am hearing the message loud and clear that medical assistance is critical. We need ambulances and pharmaceutical companies to step up and do what is expected of them. The UN now estimates that more than 3 million people have left Ukraine as refugees. I imagine the figures both ambassadors provided will change on foot of that. The UN estimates that 1.4 million children have had to flee Ukraine. That is shocking and frightening.

I will deal with Poland and Romania separately. Some 1.7 million people have now crossed over into Poland. I welcome the swift system that has been implemented to meet people, give them the essentials and move them further into Poland to ensure continuity and there is not a backlog at the borders. We heard from the Ukrainian ambassador that some businesses are seeking to profiteer off this humanitarian crisis. Ryanair was mentioned because the cost of flights out of Poland has dramatically increased. Any business seeking to capitalise on the back of a humanitarian crisis is pitiful. It is despicable and they need to be called out for it. This committee should write to Michael O'Leary and Ryanair voicing our serious concerns. The Joint Committee on Transport and Communications should go further and call them before it. Any business or company anywhere in the world seeking to capitalise on people fleeing for their lives is appalling. I do not want to the put Ms Sochaska in a difficult position but she might comment on the generalities around that. Is that something that is happening and is it causing difficulties for people trying to get out of Poland?

Are there figures on how many of the 1.7 million who have come from Ukraine into Poland are still in Poland? How many have left to come to Ireland, other EU countries or elsewhere? Does Ms Sochaska have a rough estimate of how many of the 1.7 million are still in Poland? Dr. Stefan stated that of the 412,000 who have come through Romania, there are about 85,000 left there.

This is a more general query. Here in Ireland, Covid figures are starting to increase again, unfortunately, and hospitalisations have gone up in recent weeks. In the midst of this humanitarian crisis, how does Covid fit in? What concerns are there in that regard? I am sure trying to deal with a pandemic on top of a humanitarian crisis and so many people moving is an impossible task. I ask for a brief overview of that.