Dáil debates

Wednesday, 14 July 2021

Health (Amendment) (No.2) Bill 2021: Second Stage

 

4:12 pm

Photo of Matt ShanahanMatt Shanahan (Waterford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Minister knows I am a former member of the Special Committee on Covid-19 Response, as he is, and although his tenure was shorter than mine, he saw a large number of matters covered dealing with Covid-19 response. I am a current member of the committee dealing with enterprise and in that role I hear the pleas of business and the very great difficulties businesses are having, particularly small businesses and sole traders. They want to see a pathway to get back to being operational as soon as possible. On a number of occasions, I have expressed my frustrations, as other Deputies have, with NPHET and the sole authority that it has in guiding our Covid-19 response.

I will not go back over the fallout of all the Covid-19 measures we either did not implement in time or we half-heartedly implemented along the way. They are well-documented and there is a tremendous social, physical and business fallout from Covid-19, as we know. It raises the question of what we want, nationally, and what people are seeking or hoping for. There is no doubt the vaccination drive has begun to offer a window from Covid-19, although the Delta variant is becoming a concern.

It is interesting that the Government is today proposing to open indoor dining and restaurants and we have already heard the different difficulties this brings, not least of which is discrimination. I suspect that for many businesses it will not be viable for them to operate this way. By the time they take on people to police their doors and implement social distancing measures, etc., they could find that many people might not want to move indoors just yet. People must be offered some possibility of this happening and it should be done safely. The question is whether that is what we are doing.

We could also ask questions about what is not opening, including day-care centres for the elderly. There are no increased hours for respite services and an increase in disability services has also been refused to date. Owners of bingo halls and arcades are asking when it will be their turn to be allowed to open to the same degree that hotels are allowed to have people on premises.

The other question to be asked is what is the hospital defence to a surge in Covid-19. Even in the past number of days, we can see a very strong uptick in Covid-19 presentation, with an increase of three patients overnight to intensive care units. What are the age ranges of those patients, if we assume the older and more vulnerable patients are vaccinated? Do we know the impact Covid-19 will now have in younger cohorts and those vulnerable people exposed to the virus?

There is also the question of discrimination arising from vaccination status, as has already been highlighted. I, along with other Deputies, have spoken to a number of people in business who have said it will be impossible for them to stand at the door and seek the vaccine status of everybody in a group of eight people. If two people cannot provide it, do they have to refuse permission to enter the premises? How workable would that be?

This raises the question of whether we are all in this together. I have highlighted how, as public servants, we have suffered no diminishment of our pay and conditions since this started, unlike very many people in the private sector. Those people must be listened to and we must act safely and for the right reasons. If the owners of businesses now claiming Covid restrictions support scheme funding decide to open, I presume they cannot continue to claim that funding. If business is not viable and they must close again, will such businesses be able to return to claiming that funding? What are the Government's plans on extending that scheme, based on this reopening date?

There are questions remaining about what we want and need but Covid-19 is definitely being used as a weapon of political intent. I and other Deputies have been inundated with communication from people on both sides trying to elicit where we stand. I have not made a decision yet because I can foresee significant difficulties for operators here. I can foresee discrimination as well. On the other hand, I can see the case for businesses that want to be activated. Some of these questions arise because of the Government's actions or, rather, a lack of communication. There should be a direct line of sight between the public and NPHET, other than the team telling us what the advice is to be. On a number of occasions, I have highlighted consultants in the public space who have worked on antigen testing and vitamin D but they have not been able to connect with NPHET. That is a deficit.

Tonight will tell the story of the legislation, which is not a perfect solution. I will consult other Deputies later in order to help decide how to vote.

Comments

No comments

Log in or join to post a public comment.