Frank Feighan (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputies throughout the House for their contributions in this vital debate on the Government's response to Covid-19, including the plan for living with Covid-19, Resilience and Recovery 2020-2021. Our overall goal is to reopen our society and economy as safely as possible. This is a challenge facing governments the world over. We have seen the statistics from the WHO in recent days that worldwide case numbers have passed 33 million and worldwide deaths have exceeded 1 million. In many parts of the world, the pandemic is returning at an increasing and alarming rate and we do not want this to happen in our country. The resilience and recovery plan sets out a very clear framework for decision-making with regard to this public health pandemic. Our objective is to strike a balance between what is safe and what may risk increasing transmission of the disease. Therefore, we are prioritising certain sectors of society at this time in the knowledge that we will be able to return to normal life in future.

We have now moved from the initial emergency response phase and objective of flattening the curve to the next chapter of opening society while living with the virus. That said, the objective remains, as it always has been, to eliminate and eradicate the virus wherever it is detected. This is the reason for the robust testing and tracing strategy put in place by the HSE. The plan has a framework for decision-making by the Government. We also to continue to promote the very clear public health advice for individuals, much of which has not changed for many months. These include good cough and hand hygiene, wearing a face covering where required by law and when visiting vulnerable people, avoiding crowded places, including public transport, as much as possible, and working from home if possible, and I recognise that for many people this is not an option due to the nature of their work. As a society, to suppress transmission of the virus and reduce the impact of the disease, it is important for all of us in all walks of life to heed this advice. While the Government can legislate for mandatory face coverings on public transport and in retail settings, we cannot legislate for every situation. We must all take an element of personal responsibility.

We have contained outbreaks of the virus in Kildare, Laois and Offaly, and more recently we have seen how the efforts of the public in Limerick, Tipperary and Waterford have turned the tide of the trajectory of the disease. We succeeded in doing this thanks to the collective efforts of the public, who adhered to the guidelines, as well as the expert knowledge and advice from our public health specialists and the dedication and hard work of all front-line workers. We need individually and collectively to keep doing the basic things right, which the vast majority of us are doing already.

I will now deal with some of the issues raised by Deputies. Deputy Harkin outlined the fact that businesses need more notice. We will take this on board. It has been an issue in recent months, certainly in the north west and Donegal. Many businesses did not get enough notice. It is something we have taken on board. The Deputy also spoke about northern Italy, Spain and New York and the new tests and pilot testing. There are certainly options. She spoke about the employment wage subsidy scheme and that businesses that loses 28% of turnover get nothing. Perhaps there can be a better system than a cut-off point. The Deputy also spoke about the VAT rate reducing from 13.5% to 9%. I hope this will be considered in the budget.

Deputy Mattie McGrath spoke about Deputy Lahart's contribution. He also praised the Garda, the GAA and various organisations for the work they are doing. He stated that figures on mental health and self-harm have not been collated since April. I will try to get the figures for the Deputy through the Department as soon as I can.

Deputy Shortall spoke about considering the experience of other countries with regard to minimising Covid-19 and the messaging is key. She spoke about influencers and that the GAA in Dublin could be serious influencers on the ground. We find that a certain cohort of people, perhaps those aged over 50, still get their news from the old traditional news outlets, such as local and national newspapers or the news on television at 6 p.m. It is a very effective way but it is not getting through to younger people. We do need to use different outlets.

Deputy Cathal Crowe spoke about dental care and the backlog for orthodontic services. He asked about a tax rebate for people who have to get private treatment. There is merit in this. He also spoke about communication when a school has an outbreak and that perhaps communication between the HSE and the principal might be a bit quicker instead of waiting 24 hours.

Deputies Alan Farrell, McAuliffe, Boyd Barrett, Barry and Jim O'Callaghan spoke about mental health and fatigue . It is an issue we are facing after many months of living with Covid and with regard to businesses and industries. We may have to look at a different way of approaching it. I know NPHET and the Government are working together. Somebody said that perhaps businesses and other people could be brought onto NPHET. The NPHET team is primarily from the health sector but they also have knowledge of sporting events and business. Just because somebody is from one area does not mean to say they do not have knowledge. It would be ideal to bring in people from sporting organisations but the NPHET members also have links with sporting organisations.

Deputy Higgins spoke about the arts and dance classes for young and old. It would be great to get those classes back. She also spoke about opening venues that are capable of bringing in fewer people than they used to and that the Covid payments could be tweaked so sound engineers, roadies and musicians could get back working. She absolutely has a point.

Deputy Conway-Walsh spoke about staff burnout in Mayo University Hospital and the need to listen to them. Deputy Wynne spoke about visiting hospitals and other health services on compassionate grounds. She has a point too.

Deputy Boyd Barrett talked about trusting the people and giving them the information they need. Deputy Barry spoke about taxi driver protests and their financial plight, as well as emergency accommodation and suicide in Cork. It is an issue which I heard loud and clear.

Deputy McAuliffe spoke about protecting the vulnerable in society. Deputy Jim O'Callaghan had some interesting views that we could crush the virus into the ground but we need to open up sport. It is spreading around the world but reducing human activity may not be the right approach. Young people will gladly listen to messages but it is having a serious economic impact.

Deputy Andrews spoke about team sports and the difference between soccer, Gaelic football and rugby. Hopefully, soccer might be included in the sports allowed. I would have thought it was but maybe junior soccer is an issue.

Deputy Fitzpatrick talked about the health and safety of people. We need to protect jobs. Deputy Tóibín spoke about cancer screening and cancer patients. There are many other areas in the health services from where people have gone to work on the Covid-19 issue. It is hard to get the right balance.

Deputy Murnane O'Connor spoke about older people. Deputy Dillon spoke about leadership. Hopefully, we can return to normal. Deputy Devlin spoke about uncharted waters but we need an all-island response. That is what we are doing. I know the various teams from the health Departments in both jurisdictions are working together. There is another meeting between them tomorrow. We need to work collectively, across the island of Ireland, North and South, east and west, to sort out and attack this virus as quickly as possible.

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