Peter Fitzpatrick (Louth, Independent) | Oireachtas source

There is no doubt that we have seen unprecedented times over the past seven months and unfortunately we continue to experience them. There was no previous roadmap to deal with Covid, which makes our task all the more challenging. I welcome the publication of the Government's plan to deal with the virus over the coming six to nine months. It is important that we as public representatives work together to ensure that correct decisions are made on how to safeguard the people of this country first and the economy second. At all times the health and safety of our people must take absolute priority over everything else. This virus does not distinguish based on age, gender, health or vulnerability. It simply looks for the next victim regardless. Unfortunately I fear we will be living with this disease for the foreseeable future and as such we need to plan for this scenario. There was no roadmap for dealing with a pandemic like Covid. However, we know that we as individuals have the power to control this virus by following the health guidelines. It is important that this message is constantly given and that the public is made aware of the importance of it. I feel that over the past couple of months this message was lost and the public let its guard down. As a result, the virus has started to take hold. The public health measures must be at the front of any campaign. Even in this House we must reiterate their importance. These measures include washing our hands properly and regularly; wearing face coverings on public transport and in shops, shopping centres and all indoor settings where social distancing is difficult to achieve; having good coughing and sneezing etiquette; always maintaining social distance; reducing social interactions; working remotely where possible; isolating immediately and contacting our GP if we experience any symptoms; and downloading the Covid tracker app.

If we, as a group of people, can observe these actions then there is no doubt we can control this virus and protect the most vulnerable in our society.

The next area we need to look at is protecting our economy. Without a functioning economy we will not be able to maintain our public services. I welcome the supports put in place for businesses already but certain sectors will need more support than others. The hospitality sector has been badly affected and we must ensure every support is given to ensure its survival. This sector employs a great number of people and we must protect their jobs. The tourism sector in my constituency has been badly affected. The north of the county, including the Carlingford and Cooley region, has seen the number of tourists greatly reduced and the knock-on effect has been felt by many businesses there.

We must ensure at all costs that our businesses are given every opportunity to survive. We will hear many people say we cannot afford to keep supporting the economy in the way we have. My view, however, is that we cannot afford not support them. If businesses are allowed to fail then they are gone; jobs are lost forever. This will be a greater cost to the economy.

Over the past number of weeks, the number of incidences of Covid-19 in my constituency increased to alarming levels. This was particularly true for the north of the county. One measure we need to look at is restricting cross-Border travel to essential travel only. I do not advocate closing the Border but we need to address the issue of large Covid-19 numbers along this area. Restricting travel to essential travel, as happened in Dublin, will probably help to control the numbers.

Another issue is that of the mental health of younger generations during the pandemic. From working with many of our younger generations I know of the pressure this pandemic has brought on them both emotionally and physically. We must be able to reach out to them and offer real support.

Finally, I wish to put on the record my support for the Government in its efforts to beat this virus and urge all Deputies from all sides of the House to work together in this regard. We must protect the most vulnerable in our society and help them at the most critical time. We must offer hope to everyone that there is an end to this pandemic and that everyone working together will defeat this virus.

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