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

Is the Minister of State saying the report will be published before the end of the year? Will we have a chance to debate it here on the floor of the Dáil? I hope we will and I can tell the Minister of State that I will definitely be looking for that debate if it is not offered by the Government because it is important. I saw the Minister of State's little video. I do not follow her party on social media but it was sent to me by several workers who are very concerned because they see what the Government is doing, which is pitting workers against business. It is a fairly brazen and blatant attempt to do so. I saw her colleague write "Stick Sick Pay" onto her little flip chart and then say that some measures would have to be paused.

Just so that the Minister of State knows, workers got that message. They see what she is doing; I see it as well. What the Minister of State can do is help businesses and support workers at the same time. It is entirely possible to do that.

We absolutely recognise that there is a cost of doing business crisis, but that is not the fault of workers, many of whom are on very low wages. The Government's sick pay scheme was already structured in a way that made it very difficult and tough for people to access it as they have to have a doctor's certificate, which will cost people €65 to €70, which is a phenomenal amount of money if you are a low-income worker. Will the Minister of State give me something about the timeline and confirmation that we will have a chance to debate that report on the floor of the Dáil?

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