Mark Ward (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I wish to put on the record that I support public health measures and advice. Sinn Féin has been consistent in our approach on Covid and public health. I also commend the public on how they have carried themselves right throughout this pandemic and how they have looked after themselves and others. This is despite the mixed messages, kite-flying and sometimes off-the-wall regulations the Minister has proposed.

What I do not support is the way in which these measures have been brought in and implemented. It frightens me to hand the Minister a blank cheque, a cheque he has used in the past for things such as the €9 meal, which was pure nonsense. The best way to ensure that public health measures are followed is to bring the public with you, and the Government has lost the public along the way. Kite-flying and a Cabinet with more leaks than a sieve have led to public mistrust in the Government. The people I speak to cannot take the Government at face value. There have been impractical, complicated and unworkable rules for business. I was getting my hair cut this morning and was talking to my barber, Lenny. He is concerned about another lockdown. During the first lockdown he put all the safety measures in place - masks, screens, sanitisers, air filtration, online booking systems - at great expense to himself only to be told that the shop would be closed down again. He asked me again this morning, "Will this happen again, Mark?" He has had no reassurance from the Government, and I could not reassure him because I cannot second-guess this Government any more. Lenny and other small businesses that have followed the public health guidelines are to be commended, but they looked on in shock and horror at how the Government flouted its own advice by attending things such as the private soirée in the Merrion. This was a kick in the teeth for small businesses and the public and they feel that nobody has been held accountable.

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