Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I never realised I was so popular in this House until today. It might be a product of the political environment we are in at the moment, but I thank the Taoiseach and other Teachtaí Dála for their good wishes. I also pass on my best wishes to Deputy McDonald.

A total of 11,497 people have been diagnosed with Covid-19 and 444 people have, sadly, passed away. I pay tribute to all of those who are recovering and have recovered, and pass on my thoughts and those of the Labour Party to all those who have lost cherished loved ones.

I have repeatedly said, since the beginning of this crisis, that our front-line healthcare workers would be our heroes in all of this and they have been. They have put their lives on the line every day in order that all of the rest of us can stay well. I pay tribute to them and to the two heroes who lost their lives in St. Luke's General Hospital, Kilkenny, in the past couple of days.

The Taoiseach asked for suggestions. I will give him one. With the approach of May Day, the day of the worker, the day we celebrate workers and all they contribute to society, we need, as a collective and as a House, to examine how we can celebrate the work of our healthcare workers in a more practical way. Today, considering the unique circumstances, we in the Labour Party are proposing to the Taoiseach and other Members of the House that we pay all our healthcare workers a one-off solidarity payment of €1,000 as a gesture on 1 May. We know all these workers are going way beyond anything they have ever done before or anything they will ever do again. It would be a gesture to show our appreciation. I ask everybody in this House to support the proposal. I ask everyone in the country to support us also.

We know that some sectors, such as the retail sector, are offering bonuses to staff who are working at this time. Workers in our health service should see some kind of similar tribute for their work in their payslips on 1 May. This gesture would show healthcare workers that we appreciate their putting their lives on the line. We know they are going above and beyond anything they have ever experienced before, in many cases exposing themselves to Covid-19. Many are isolating themselves from their families. This brings about practical extra costs when it comes to accommodation, childcare, transport and meal provision. The staff do all they are doing so they can continue to treat patients while working extra shifts. As I know from quite personal experience, they sometimes do so without adequate personal protective equipment. I ask the Taoiseach to take that on board.

I acknowledge all the other workers across the country, including gardaí, firefighters, staff in An Post and all in retail who are ensuring the continuation of our supply chains.

In the time remaining, I want to ask the Taoiseach to do a few things. The people of this country are going through a lot and showing great solidarity. By and large, everybody is rowing in and agreeing to all the measures that are being put in place. We need, however, a vision from the Taoiseach as to how we exit this. I am not asking that he get everything right. In fact, he will not. I do not believe anybody here would say one word against him, but the people need hope and a vision. Grandparents need to know that one day they will hug their grandchildren again. Businesses need to know that circumstances will change. All of us collectively need to be part of helping the Taoiseach to achieve this. People need a vision and need it in the next ten days. The Taoiseach might think about that.

During the question and answer session, we will get to deal with a range of other issues. I have concerns over how banks are behaving. On the leaving certificate examinations, we need greater certainty. In particular, we really need to deal with the issue of personal protective equipment for healthcare workers. Up until last night, we were down to our last 1,000 gowns. A aeroplane landed yesterday evening that has ensured we now have a supply of gowns. We are just barely getting through and we need everybody to work harder to ensure we get the personal protective equipment. I know people are doing so.

I have repeatedly asked for something and do not know why it has not been delivered. We have a lack of capacity to hold the Government to account in these strange times. I am referring to there being no parliamentary questions and to the circumstances in which we have to work. Let me say, for the fifth or sixth time quite publicly but this time in this Chamber, that the Government has to publish the deal that was done involving it and the private hospitals. There are many components to this. What was agreed is quite confusing. Were consultants part of the mix? The cost is quite large. We need transparency on this issue, and we need it now. I have been asking for this repeatedly. Collectively, can we see what has been agreed so we can all look at it for ourselves and determine how best we can move forward working with the sector?

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