Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I acknowledge the exceptional effort the Government has made in recent months to pump finances into our national economy in an effort to save jobs and protect businesses. In doing so, the Government has supported businesses and undeniably saved jobs, helping to prevent tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands from having to sign on the live register throughout the country. I acknowledge these supports cannot last indefinitely and they are emergency measures to shore up our economy until we can reopen fully and recover the economic ground we have lost over the past 13 months.

Hospitality and tourism have been among the sectors worst hit by the pandemic. I draw the attention of the Minister to FBD. I am getting reports from publicans in my constituency that FBD is not honouring the claim awarded against it in the court case in February. I urge the Minister to look into this and ensure FBD deals fairly with its customers.

When we do reopen, hospitality will still be under severe pressure.

I ask the Minister to double the CRSS for the four weeks prior to reopening. That would allow these businesses to have a reasonable cash flow in place so they could open their doors in a viable manner. There will be restrictions when they reopen. There will be a need for continuous support for these businesses when they open their doors. We have put so much into the economy and into these businesses, so it would be a shame if some of them were not able to reopen because we did not go the last leg of the journey with them. The tourism sector, whether it is bus operators or people who operate golf tours who depend on tourists coming into the country, will have another difficult year, continuing into next year. Some of these businesses will need support far beyond 2021.

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