Pauline O'Reilly (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

This has been a really difficult year for children. The Government has done all it can in terms of education. Reopening the schools was the best thing that could have been done. However, we do not yet know what the long-term impact of the pandemic on children will be. Last weekend my nine-year-old daughter said the number one thing that she wanted for her birthday next week was an end to Covid, despite the fact that she is in school and is happy. She also said that she will remember this time for the rest of her life.

With that in mind, let us turn now to the adults who last weekend put everything we have achieved thus far in jeopardy. They have not thought about the legacy they are leaving for our children. Over the past nine months, we as a Government have done our utmost to support businesses, put in place supports for workers and put the physical and mental well-being of our community to the forefront.

What were the adults who were drinking on the streets of Dublin last weekend doing? They were putting all of that in jeopardy. We know that vaccines are on the way, but we cannot throw caution to the wind at this important time. I ask people not just to think about the vulnerable people in our communities that we all know need to be supported but also about what they are doing now that will have a deep and lasting impact on the development of the younger age group as we go forward.