Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am not sure what the Deputy is trying to get at by taking a swipe at the Tánaiste, my party leader. We have tried at all times to introduce a balance as to how we deal with Covid. At all times it has favoured public health first while protecting people from the threat of the virus, saving as many lives as we possibly can and stopping the spread of the virus. It is also unfair to paint all businesses into one category and to say they are not playing their part. Businesses have taken a major hit over the past year in the response to Covid. A lot of the restrictions are on business and trade and therefore on people's jobs as well. I think everybody has played their part. As a taxpayer, I am trying to support those businesses through this difficult time. It is unfair to come in here and generalise. If there are individual cases, I am more than happy to deal with them. We do that. We respond to them. Our agencies have done so as well in a very professional way. In many cases this has resulted in changes to the approach of some businesses, that is, a few businesses. The majority are, without a doubt, playing their part. If the Deputy is aware of cases, I ask her to bring them forward and we can have them looked at but it is wrong of her to make the comments she made. I remind her that many of her party colleagues wanted to keep pubs open only a few months ago, so it should be borne in mind that some of the commentary in here does not always add up and there is not always joined-up thinking. It is wrong to give the impression that anything but public health has come first in this debate for the past year. I am quite conscious that some workers have concerns, and we try to deal with them. Many contact my offices and our Department about retail and we deal with that. The Garda and the Department of Justice have been part of that enforcement, and we have called into many retail businesses and passed on the advice and the guidance. That has changed the operations. That is what we do. The regulations and the guidance are there. I disagree with the Deputy that businesses need clearer rules. I think anybody who is capable of running a business can interpret what the rules are and who is essential. We have to be very clear. The level 5 measures set out by the Government were the result of a Government decision taken with stakeholders on the best public health advice as to what is essential. Yes, the advice and the guidance in respect of this level 5 lockdown differ from the advice and the guidance given during the first one in February and March 2020. We were dealing with a brand new virus that we did not know a lot about. We have learned a lot over the time since. We have tried to prioritise certain sectors such as manufacturing, education and services for people with special needs. Yes, we have made changes and more traffic will be seen on the roads but it is nowhere near what it would have been in normal times. The restrictions are there.

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