Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)

I agree with the Deputy. In any event 1 January is a bank holiday. It is not an appropriate day to start a new job, either from the employer's or the doctor's point of view. I hope we can reach agreement and that we will not have to act unilaterally on this issue. There is also the issue of July and the rotation situation in the UK. Both dates need to be changed. If we move to 1 February that would move the other to 1 August, which is the same date as in the UK. There may be issues around people applying for both, but the current date of 1 January is unsatisfactory and should be changed.

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