Neale Richmond (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I will take just a minute and hopefully the Minister and Minister of State will be able to fit in as many replies to myself and the preceding Deputies in the remaining five minutes or so.

I have two questions for the Minister. The first relates to the many people in the over-60 cohort who still have concerns about vaccines and the need to provide clarity on that and reassurance that they will be vaccinated in due course in a quick and efficient manner if they are unsure about taking certain vaccines.

The second question is far wider and something which has become very topical in the past week. I have raised it with the Minister a couple of times. I am referring to the absolute failure of a certain drugs company to meet its commitments to the European Union, and by extension to all Irish citizens, in terms of supply. Supply and safety are the only game in town. We must vaccinate as quickly and as safely as possible throughout this country and throughout the EU but we cannot do that if a company consistently fails to meet its contractual obligations for very many reasons. My very blunt question for the Minister is what are the ramifications.

What will happen to that company which has let the people of Europe down so spectacularly in their darkest hour?

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