Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Deputy Cullinane is right. Deputies are voting but they do not have a clue on what they are voting. They are just running along. In west Cork, we call such people "Yes boys" or "Yes girls". What is wrong with them? Surely they should know what we are voting for here. What fines will be applied and to whom? College students in Cork city or elsewhere might have next week off and wish to go home to their parents. Are they allowed to travel home this evening?

3 o’clock

I asked the Minister that question earlier, and he did not clarify that. Will they be fined on the way home? Will they face sanctions in law? People have a right to get answers to those questions, but we have no answers.

Deputy Mattie McGrath referred to the marts. Farmers are facing a major crisis. If the buyer goes in around the ring and he is 10 ft or 12 ft away from the next person in wide open sheds, will he face a fine? Will the mart owners face a fine? In some marts yesterday, prices for some bulls were down by €155 and prices for weanling heifers were down by €100. Those are enormous amounts. Farmers cannot keep taking this hit because of indecision in the Government. It is up to us as the Deputies on the ground to try to find answers. The Government is railroading ahead, and it will have the same old gang who will vote for it no matter what it puts before the people, even if they do not know what they are voting on; they are voting on a blank paper.

I question everything because that is what my electorate in west Cork asks me to do. I acknowledge that the Minister cannot have an overview of everything that goes on in the country, but certainly the buck lies with him to a degree. Can the marts reopen? Basically, that is what it is down to. Can the farmer continue to trade? If he cannot, the Government should announce that today and cease that trading. It should not leave farmers in a situation where they cannot sell their animals in the mart. That is the situation they face in many marts. The Minister can ask the mart managers.

I am surprised that the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy McConalogue, has not come out and clarified the matter. He should at least work towards a solution. Solutions are available and they have proved that. Farmers and buyers do not want to be fined. Mart owners do not want to be fined for breaking the rules. They applied the rules meticulously. Cafés, restaurants and pubs applied the rules meticulously and they are all closed no matter how well they did things. We have had considerable contact from people working in gyms etc. They worked to the guidelines to the best of their ability. They do not know why they cannot open.

The Minister is probably running down the clock because regardless of the amendments tabled, the Government has its majority here. We saw that with last night's vote on the Commission of Investigation (Mother and Baby Homes and certain related Matters) Records, and another Matter, Bill. The way Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil and Green Party Deputies came in here and voted was appalling. The Government has too much power and it is abusing that power.

I made it very clear at the beginning of my discussions earlier that the coronavirus is a very dangerous virus. It is a curse on our people. While it is here, we should work with it. We should work with the people and not crucify them. I am surprised that the Labour Party and the Social Democrats support these fines which hurt people further. I accept we need guidelines and people need to stick to them to a degree. However, chasing and fining people who are struggling at this time is a step too far.

I plead with the Minister to speak with the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine. I contacted Deputy Cahill, Chairman of the Joint Committee on Agriculture and the Marine, to convene a meeting of the committee any time between now and next week - it does not matter if it is Friday, Saturday or Sunday, I will come back up - to try to resolve this issue with marts so that at least some people can continue to operate in some normal way and not be worried about facing a fine. It could be a fine of €1,000, €100 or €500 because a man or a woman wants to put food on the table.

I have been inundated with calls on the issue, mainly from women, who are very stressed about the situation they are facing. They have bills to be paid and food to be bought. Their children cannot come home from college and be given a bit of food or whatever and let go back again the following week or the week after when they can resume after the break. We are basically standing over them with rules and regulations, which the House is agreeing to without knowing what we are agreeing to, and it is happy to do so. Imagine a young person who may be struggling to continue with his or her education and has to be in college. These young people are asking if they can come home for the week ahead. Deputies who are voting for this legislation today should ask themselves one question. If they did not know whether they could go home this evening, how would they feel? However, they are quite happy to come here, pat themselves on the back and vote for that. They should be ashamed of themselves.

We need clarity. These young people need clarity. These farmers need clarity. I know the Minister cannot answer every question. In certain areas there is major doubt at present. The Minister needs to stand up to the plate and give leadership. He must give these young people this opportunity and clarity. It is a strange world if they are told they cannot go home and have to stay in an apartment for a week. Their parents cannot go to them to give them food either. It is turning into a very strange world. Politicians should be thinking twice. I will support these amendments.

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