Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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There is a certain narrative about social workers and where they sit in the wider landscape. The recruitment of social workers is a long-standing issue for this committee. The question of whether there are resources to recruit more now arises. Perhaps the Minister can guarantee, in the context of the Estimates process - to hang it on its hook and remain on message - that there will be more social workers recruited. We are already seeing the negative effects of the insufficient number of social workers, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic. The question is whether something within the Estimates process can give us grounds for hope there.