Victor Boyhan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for coming in. I thank the House and the Leader for facilitating two sessions on this matter and it is timely, appropriate and right to have statements in this House on reopening Ireland.

I am conscious in particular of the 2,000 people who have died. As the Minister of State has rightly said, they represent husbands, wives, partners, family, brothers and sisters who connect into a bigger family and, ultimately, a community family and the nation. It is clear to us all, particularly those in politics be it at local or national levels, that none of us is immune to the facts and reality experienced by the many people who have been deeply hurt by the Covid pandemic. It has hurt and broken many people, destroyed many businesses and livelihoods and people are suffering. I am particularly conscious of the number of people who have suffered and are suffering with their personal and mental health. Recently I listened to an RTÉ radio programme where a mother rang in to talk about her 12- or 13-year-old son and how he had lost his confidence and nerve. He had lost his ability to leave his home, to travel to school and to engage. Within ten minutes the radio station received as many as 20 or 30 calls talking about other teenagers. Most people have lost nine months of their lives but let us realise that it will be a year or maybe more and, hopefully, there will be a vaccine in the future.

Many of our businesses, people, parts of society and what holds us together are broken. One of the saddest calls that I received in the last nine months came from a man who lives close to me. He did not know me personally but rang to say that he could no longer visit his wife of 55 years. He told me that they married on his wife's 18th birthday when he was 19 years of age. I received his first call in Leinster House when he asked if I could give him a few minutes and of course I said I could. He talked for 15 minutes about his experience of going to a glass door located on the side of a nursing home to visit his wife who was in the early stages of dementia and being unable to hold her, kiss her, hug her, embrace her and tell her that he loved her. That is the effect that this terrible pandemic has had on people, which is happening all over the country. That is about everyone and our own families. Let us think about being close to somebody yet having that person pass away after being sick for a few months. One would have been unable to visit or see the person or to say goodbye. Moreover, in many cases, people have been unable to attend the funerals and say farewell. That is something for which we have to prepare because when all of this, hopefully, goes away in a few months, we will have to pick up the pieces, support people and listen to people.

One thing that I would like to see is a bigger campaign about mental health as too many people are suffering in silence. It is not always easy to say that one has issues with one's health, particularly now, and issues that may never have come to the fore before. When society is locked down and shut down and when one experiences a lot of quietness and stillness not by choice then that bubbles up within one, so one must confront issues that may have been parked for a long time. I refer to issues that one chose to forget and decided to avoid. If anything, in this pandemic, many of those issues have surfaced for many people. I say to the Minister of State at the Department of Health that it is important that we address and consider these issues.

I wish to use my remaining time to thank the public sector. I am delighted that the Minister of State has acknowledged the public sector because its workers get a lot of stick from time to time but they have excelled. I thank the gardaí, nurses and front-line workers, be they delivery persons, essential farm workers and whoever they may be. It is important that we acknowledge that front-line workers have stood tall and did their jobs well. I hope that when all of this dusts down, we will remember front-line workers and be strong advocates for them when it comes to their pay and conditions. I thank the teachers and all the people who are involved in all other aspects of life. Finally, I thank the people involved in local government who responded, as well as the volunteers who got involved in the Community Call, which is a wonderful initiative that spans across the 31 local authorities. It was great to have such consensus and support. Finally, I thank the Minister of State, the Government and the previous Government. If I am honest, there are difficulties with this Administration in terms of transition. I have seen a difference in style and communications from the last Administration to this one and there are lessons to be learned. The previous Government demonstrated exceptionally good communication. I know we are in a transitional period and I do not want to use my time to be negative but I urge that messages are crisp, clear and encouraging.