Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I am grateful for the opportunity to speak on this important matter. Over the past 24 months, a variety of public health measures were introduced. While there might have been differing views on what needed to be done, we accept that at all times those measures were motivated by the public health interest and were guided by public health advice. Nevertheless, it is very welcome, not just from a social but also from an economic perspective, that we are in a position to lift many of those restrictions now. Businesses and workers are especially happy to see these measures eased. Contrary to what a lot of people said about people living it up on the very modest pandemic unemployment payment, PUP, workers flocked back to work. They could not wait to get back to work. The moment that they could do so, they went back. More should be done by the Government to recognise this. We should not allow the narrative to persist that people were living it large. There were people who were sitting on Government benches at the time talking about civil and public servants who were at home with their feet up watching box sets. That was not the case. People stepped up to the plate and worked really hard and that should be reflected and amplified a little by the Government.

The hospitality sector bore the brunt of much of the public health restrictions over the last two years and while the sector was understanding of the worsening public health situation at different stages over the past 24 months, it was frustrated at being singled out as part of the problem, especially when the vast majority of pubs, restaurants and entertainment venues were totally compliant with the public health measures, to the letter in fact. If we cast our minds back, many restaurants and pubs closed before they were even advised to do so. While the Government was dithering, trying to make up its mind on whether it should advise them to close, many of them did so out of concern for their staff and their customers.

While the scaling back of restrictions has been very welcome for hospitality workers, those who work remotely will have more mixed emotions when it comes to the relaxation of restrictions as they return to on-site working. We had cases of employers being able to summon workers back on site without proper provisions being put in place. The announcement was made, workers were told to go back and then, two weeks later, the return to work protocol was published. The Tánaiste is only now talking about remote working legislation. Working from home or remote working is not just a response to the pandemic, although it was an effective response; it is also a really serious workers' rights issue and we should take the opportunity now to run with it. A report on the right to request remote working was only recently published and it highlighted that workers want a hybrid or blended model. It is not surprising that workers were confused and really angry at the fact that they were summoned back to work without being given adequate protection.

Two years into the pandemic and we are only now starting to have that conversation. There is no statutory sick pay. There is no extra bank holiday although I am assured we will have one very shortly, which is good. But there was two years of time lost when we could have been capitalising on remote working and giving people the right to remote work, not simply the right to ask and 13 reasons, well crafted by the Tánaiste, why an employer could say no. That was an awful way to approach it. We spoke about it at the joint committee this morning. The Tánaiste says he is open to amendments. My God, the whole Bill needs to be amended. It comes from a very negative place altogether.

As the restrictions ease, I ask that the Ministers of State convey to their colleagues, and specifically to the Tánaiste, that there is a serious issue around warehoused debt. I call on the Government to monitor the situation for small to medium enterprises and ensure that the hidden debt does not effect their ability to bounce back to profitability in the short to medium term.

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