Thomas Gould (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

This week, it was announced that indoor summer camps for children could not go ahead. LEGO camps, drama camps and many others that children across the State were looking forward to have been cancelled. Following on from last week's announcement, first holy communions, confirmations and christenings were all cancelled. However, this legislation will allow children to go into restaurants and bars if their parents are fully vaccinated. This does not make sense to people and raises serious questions about understanding the impact the pandemic is having on young people in particular.

The Bill is just one in a long list of measures that are discriminatory, unworkable and fly in the face of what the Government's slogan has been all along, that is, that we are all in this together. Yesterday, digital certificates were issued to thousands of people. However, instead of this being a good news story, Ministers caused chaos and confusion. They went on radio giving conflicting advice and no one could tell who was right. This is not a game. These are decisions that need to be well planned, properly thought out and discussed with all of the relevant people. We need to have faith in the Government's ability to handle the pandemic.

I wish to raise a further issue quickly, namely, Cork Airport and its workers. Should any Government funding be provided to Aer Lingus now or in the future, it must be on the condition that the 150 staff at Cork Airport are not laid off for a ten-week period. There are no reasons not to keep them on the employment wage subsidy scheme. Ten weeks amount to five pay packets for these workers. They are worried about the announcement that they will be laid off for ten weeks and are concerned that, when they return to work, they will be asked to sign new contracts with less favourable conditions. I ask that the workers at Cork Airport be protected.

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