Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Deputy knows it is not true to suggest I will not listen to anyone other than NPHET on antigen testing.

I recognise the Deputy has been advocating for ventilation consistently for a long period of time. It has been looked at several times. There was the group that reported into NPHET, as the Deputy knows. NPHET did not endorse its view, but noted it. We have this group in the HSE called antimicrobial resistance and infection control, AMRIC, which was originally set up for antimicrobial resistance, but is providing expert advice on this. I will point out another group that does excellent work, the scientific advisory group for emergencies, SAGE, that advised the UK Government. It recently published a paper on ventilation and HEPA filters, on which much of the conversation has been around. It did not conclude this should be used in every school. It said it could have a role to play, but that more data and evidence were required.

Having looked at the evidence, the experts are concluding that it is not as clear cut. However, I welcome, and have no doubt the Deputy welcomes, the recent announcements of additional funding in education. The Deputy's amendment is more modest and is not about the Oireachtas having to vote through all regulations. On the face of it, it seems like a reasonable one I would like to be able to accept. The reason I cannot accept it is the timing issue. I am trying to meet the Deputy halfway. We have put in place, based on the debate we had last week, timely updates for all of the Deputies on the regulations.

I asked again today for the Department not just to send the regulation, but a briefing note on it. Of course, the Dáil can schedule its time to debate any of those. The reason I cannot accept the amendment is the 48 hours. There is a need, sometimes, to be able to move very quickly. Last week, when we found out about Omicron, there was a Cabinet meeting on Friday, while we were all here debating Second Stage of this Bill. Cabinet made decisions. I was here and did not attend the meeting. We, in the Department of Health, needed to regulate and have those regulations signed by midnight on Monday, which we did.

However, if we just think it through, it would be reasonable if we are laying things before the Dáil for 48 hours. There would be 48 hours where the Dáil and the Oireachtas were sitting, rather than over a weekend. If we were to do this, we would have had to lay them before the Dáil yesterday, allow for yesterday and today, and then potentially have them come into effect tomorrow. Sometimes, there is a need to move. I am genuinely trying to find a way of going as far as I can, without removing the Government's ability, on occasion, to move very quickly. We are monitoring Omicron on a daily basis in terms of responses. That is the rationale, but I am trying to go as far as I can, other than that.

Of course, Deputy McGrath opposes this. He has opposed everything on Covid. Of course, he wants pre-legislative scrutiny, but what he did not point out was that the officials briefed the Joint Committee on Health. I acknowledge and thank the committee for agreeing to waive pre-legislative scrutiny, as it has done before. Let us be honest. The Deputy has been against public health measures from day 1.

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