Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome our witnesses and thank them for their informative responses. They did not mention any effect that the lockdown had on the delivery of services. I would have thought it would have been fairly serious because nothing happened for two or three years. How would the witnesses refer to it? I acknowledge that the picture they paint is very serious. The dental service and orthodontics have been dogged for years by a lack of attention. For instance, in respect of orthodontics, it is not unusual to see patients bleeding from their mouths and so on while doing school exams, which is appalling. Nobody is available. I know there was a classification of one, two and three, A, B and C. Under A, a desperate situation could be dealt with. Under B, it might be dealt with. Under C, it was never dealt with and, therefore, people had to go to private dentistry. To be fair, it was available at a price, whether people could afford it or not. Will the witnesses mention the effects or impact of Covid?