Dáil debates

Wednesday, 24 March 2021

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions

 

1:05 pm

Photo of Micheál MartinMicheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

There was one week in January when we had 42,000 cases, in one seven-day period, and 2,000 people in hospital. In the last seven days we have had approximately 3,800 cases and today we have about 329 people in hospital. I ask the Deputy please to stop saying that the figures are not coming down. That is killing people saying that. It is telling people that their efforts are not working. The efforts and sacrifices that people have made have worked against a very virulent, dangerous and transmissible virus. We have got the numbers down quite dramatically because of our efforts. Meanwhile, we are also vaccinating more and more people. We have vaccinated the most vulnerable in our society, which is also working. Serial testing in nursing homes is yielding a positivity rate of 0.18%. That is how much the vaccines are working where they have been administered. It is likewise with our front-line healthcare workers, where the vaccines have also worked. That is the parallel process on which we must work.

Believe me, I understand fully where Deputy Danny Healy-Rae is coming from. Economically, however, it has been proved all over the world that the more effort there is to try to keep pressure on the virus, the better will be the result in the medium to long term. The variant is a real problem. That is all I am saying to the Deputy. This variant just takes off, if it is given a chance.

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