Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

We in the Rural Independent Group try to be constructive at Business Committee meetings. We know how challenging these times are, but the Government is hiding behind shorter sittings and not enough debate on issues such as the Land Development Agency Bill 2021, the management or mismanagement of the Covid situation, the manipulation of figures and the situation with our schools, hospitals and front-line workers. It is not good enough. Surely, given the size of the Convention Centre and the cost in terms of Dáil sittings here, the Dáil could sit for a third day for, say, six hours rather than a long day. We understand the health and safety guidelines, but this is a huge space. People are asking us why we cannot meet here for longer. Other people do not have the luxury of moving to a facility like this. We should show leadership and allow for proper scrutiny and debate and Taoiseach's questions and answers.

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