Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Ar dtús báire, déanaim comhbhrón le teaghlaigh na beirte a bhfuair bás inné mar gheall ar Covid-19. Tá cuid mhór le déanamh. Caithfidh muidne sa Teach seo comhoibriú le chéile sa dóigh is go dtig linn na tragóidí seo a ísliú agus a stopadh san am atá amach romhainn. Cuireann muidne i Sinn Féin ár mbuíochas in iúl do na hoibrithe, go háirithe na hoibrithe sláinte agus iad sin uilig atá ar an líne thosaigh, atá ag troid in éadan an víris, Covid-19. Caithfidh muid níos mó a dhéanamh dóibh, go háirithe ó thaobh trealaimh chosanta phearsanta. Caithfidh muid níos mó a dhéanamh dóibh siúd a chaill a bpoist mar gheall ar an víreas seo agus níos mó tacaíocht a thabhairt dóibh. Is é sin an fáth go gcreideann Sinn Féin gur chóir go n-íocfaidh an Stát 100% dá bpá suas go dtí €525 agus go bhfuil leasú againn a dhéanfaidh é sin.

I begin this morning by expressing my deepest sympathy to the families and friends of the two further people who lost their lives to Covid-19 and whose deaths were announced last night. As a result, all of us need to work together. We need to try to minimise and stop these tragedies in the coming period. I pay tribute to our health workers and to all of those on the front line fighting against Covid-19. Their courage, selflessness, and dedication is an inspiration and a comfort to the nation. These are trying times, but I say to each and every one of these people that they have our gratitude, support, and solidarity.

Beyond expressions of support, we have to make sure that our health workers have everything they need to do their jobs. We need to ensure that all available capacity within our health system is utilised, that we have sufficient ventilators, respiratory equipment and beds, including intensive care unit beds, and that our front-line workers are protected. The lack of protective equipment for health workers, carers and others is a cause of very real concern. We know that some front-line workers are taking to the Internet to seek out their own resources. The Government has stated that home health workers do not need personal protective equipment, PPE. This cannot stand. We need action now on PPE. I urge all companies and individuals who have stocks of PPE to make them available to health workers. I also call on the pharmaceutical and food processing industries to donate any PPE they can. Along with the arrival of imported PPE, attempts must be made to ensure a reliable domestic production line of various PPE items to protect our supply chain from external difficulties and to guarantee that our health staff will have the protective equipment they need to do their job of keeping us safe and healthy. That is essential.

The change to the criteria for Covid-19 testing is causing alarm for patients and has also put huge pressure on GPs, who are now contacting patients to tell them that their tests have been cancelled. There must be clear communication when case definitions change so that confusion and panic can be avoided.

The Bill before us is just one part of a series of things that need to be done to ensure our citizens' safety.

Everything we do now must prioritise the welfare and health of our citizens. This is not a time for delay. It is a time for decisive action. Every worker and family must be protected and supported throughout this crisis, however long it lasts. Unfortunately, that is currently not the case. Despite the Government's announcement on Tuesday, many are still unprotected. Today and yesterday, tens of thousands of people left their families and went to workplaces that are not safe. They are coming home in the evening with the fear that they are possibly transmitting the virus to their families. They are builders, factory workers, people working in call centres and many others. The nature of their work does not allow for safe physical distancing. I was contacted by the wife of a construction worker who best sums up the dread these families are living with. She wrote: "Me and the kids have been in all week and my husband has to go out to work every morning and risk coming back to his family. It is a disgrace. Something needs to be done.". We have received many similar messages. People should not be living with the fear that they and their children are being exposed to unnecessary and avoidable risks. For that reason, we believe everything other than essential businesses and services that cannot be done from home should be put into suspension for a period. We must see further action in this regard. This can be done. These workers can be sent home and kept safe and supported.

To do that we must have a proper income support scheme. Sinn Féin has proposed a model that would guarantee 100% of income up to €525 per week for workers and self-employed who are laid off during this crisis. The Government's proposal comes nowhere close to that and does not go far enough. We will propose amendments today to try to strengthen it. These are people who have mortgages, rents and bills to pay. A sum of €350 falls very short of what is needed to support workers who have been laid off and their families at this time. In respect of those who are kept on the books, we fully support a scheme to support employers who are trying to keep going. It is important that they keep going. However, the scheme must be targeted and not open to abuse. Employers should have to make up the rest of the 30% of workers' salaries. Under the Government's proposals employers can record as little as 1 cent towards their employees' pay and still avail of the scheme. That is not good enough.

I am glad the Government has taken on board our proposals on preventing rent increases. However, much more must be done to protect renters during the emergency. Renters who do not have a tenancy agreement must also be covered and we must include provisions to ensure that people do not rack up a crushing level of debt in rent arrears. There is a solution - a mortgage moratorium for landlords of renters who are unable to pay their rent and, in return, tenants must get real rent reductions and rent waivers. The Government must demand that the Central Bank and the banks play their part in making this happen. One action the banks could take is to waive the payment of mortgage interest for the duration of this crisis. The Government cannot allow the banks to profit from this public health emergency as they currently plan to do. We bailed the banks out over a decade ago and now they must play their part in ensuring workers and families are supported. We will table amendments in this regard and we ask other parties and Deputies to support them.

The coronavirus outbreak has challenged our nation in an unprecedented and profound way. The phrase, Ní neart go cur le chéile, there is no strength without unity, has been used a great deal over the last few weeks. To understand the power and meaning of that phrase we need only to look at how our communities have responded to this emergency. Although there is great stress and worry, people are not only thinking about themselves and their families but also about the safety of their neighbours and the wider community. People are checking on the elderly and others who are at risk in their communities, making sure they have enough food and helping them with any difficulties they could be facing. Volunteers are delivering care packages, making friendly telephone calls and even organising outdoor bingo. There is an enormous amount of goodwill, generosity, selflessness and community spirit in our country. These qualities are proving to be some of our biggest strengths in the fight against Covid-19. As a people, we have embraced the principle that nobody is safe unless everybody is safe and we are all the better for it. The distances we are keeping between each other are not spaces of isolation, fear or loneliness, but lengths of compassion, kindness and solidarity. It is how we best protect each other, flatten the curve, ensure our health service does not become overwhelmed and how we save lives.

People need to continue doing what they have been doing. That is essential.

A Cheann Comhairle, as we come together to battle the coronavirus, we must ensure that the House will sit throughout this crisis. We need solidarity in the Chamber but we also need scrutiny and accountability. We need to ensure that the Government works and that it is holding to account key sectors such as banking and insurance. We also need to consider life after the emergency. The people voted for a new Government only last month, and a new Government must be formed. While there has, naturally, been a scaling down of talks in that regard, at some stage soon the result of the election will have to count. A caretaker Government cannot be in office indefinitely. Given the level of work to do, the timeframe is drawing ever shorter. Both Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil have made a virtue of the politics of exclusion, and it is quite astonishing that even as we face a global pandemic and a national public health emergency, that exclusion remains their priority. I ask them to think about that because it is a shame. A Government led by Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil will not deliver real and lasting change nor provide the stability of government that we need at this time. Politics needs to change. A new Government must reflect the demand of the people to do things differently. This crisis has shown us exactly why we need a Government for change, a single-tier national health system, a homelessness sanctuary and a right to a secure roof over one's head, an economy that supports workers and families, and robust social protection - all measures that Sinn Féin was calling for long before Covid-19 entered our lives. Such developments cannot be temporary. They cannot be rowed back once the crisis subsides. Only a Government for change will ensure we will not go backwards and that we will continue to put workers and families first when this emergency has passed. That is what we need, now more than ever.

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