Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Yes. First, the Deputy does not need to tell me that it has been 124 days since the general election. I thought, come what may, after the general election life would move on and we would have a Government but I have been barely home since. I am well aware it has been 124 days since the election. The Deputy engaged in talks but there is a great irony in that many people in the House did not darken our door or talk to anybody about forming a Government. Perhaps they should reflect on that, rather than attack those us trying to continue in government while trying to form a new Government. We are well aware of the need for a new Government and this country needs that new Government quickly.

The Deputy makes a fair point in highlighting a number of groups of people for whom this pandemic has been particularly challenging.

Lockdown is tough on everybody but it is not equally tough. What this global pandemic has done, and it is a global pandemic, is highlight the inequalities that exist in society. I have a bit of advice for the next Government and for this Oireachtas. We would want to get serious about tackling those inequalities. When it comes to the fact that so many people in this House wrote-----

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