Joe McHugh (Donegal North East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am not going to jump into a bear pit on a Thursday evening. This is a serious issue. It is not just the Red Cross that is involved. The Deputy is aware of the great work his local authority did and the great work done by the local authority in Roscommon. I was speaking to Deputy Fitzmaurice about the work done at the height of the devastation by the emergency services and the community. A massive effort was made. The Government is responding to that emergency and it had to respond quickly.

The Deputy has highlighted issues that need to be dealt with and has cited specific examples relating to businesses. The Minister is open to reviewing these and I will speak to him privately on the matter. He will have this record and his officials are listening to this debate. Circumstances change. This is about addressing issues at this difficult time for so many people. I take the point raised by the Deputy and accept he has raised a serious issue. The Minister is serious about the issue also.

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