Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I must remind the Deputy of the uncertainty we are facing. We were all hopeful this time last year that we would be out of this pandemic within a number of months but that has not been the case. As I said, the Government acted fast by putting in supports and those measures are still there, including PUP, EWSS, and the Covid restrictions support scheme, CRSS. All of those are also available to the aviation sector.

I know many people have lost their jobs. It is a really difficult time for many families. We need to try to protect as many jobs as we can, not only in the aviation sector but in every sector. That is done through the broad range of supports that are available across sectors, including the aviation industry.

Working with the aviation stakeholders around what the recovery will look like is critical and that is what I am doing with my Department. It is difficult to see what that recovery will look like now, when we are in the middle of the pandemic, but that work is ongoing and proposals will be brought forward over the coming weeks.

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