Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Tánaiste for being so frank with me.

I am delighted the Tánaiste is taking on board basically everything I have said. I appreciate that but I would ask him to do one more thing. It relates to young people. The Tánaiste will know that there was an Economic and Social Research Institution, ESRI, report showing that the impact of this on young people over the last couple of years has been disproportionate. Economically, they are poorer than any younger generation for decades. Whatever we proceed with, we are all in this together. We cannot leave one group behind. We cannot say that the unvaccinated have to serve the vaccinated. Will the Tánaiste please give a commitment in that regard? I believe in the use of antigen testing. I was the first person to raise the matter here last October. Regardless of the mix of measures taken, which may potentially involve testing, I ask that the Tánaiste ensures that whatever certificate is to be used includes everybody, no matter their age, so that we can continue bringing everyone along together rather than discriminating against young people. Will the Tánaiste give us that commitment this morning?

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