Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

To follow up on what Senator Chambers said, we need a wider discussion on those who are in training. The legal profession and the accounting profession exploit people to the very last during their training periods. We need to look after student nurses but we must also examine internships and training periods in which people are exploited.

I would like to thank the Leader's office. Yesterday I had difficulty in getting information on Covid-19 restrictions for a person in Cork. The Leader's office came back to me very quickly to tell me where I should go for the information. This brings me to another point. We need a searchable database for people concerned about how Covid-19 impacts them. The query I had concerned an outdoor Christmas market that was being set up in the south of the country. The organisers were told that only 15 people could attend the market at any one time. The person who rang me said this was absolute insanity in light of how busy Patrick's Street in Cork or Henry Street in Dublin are. We are trying to get to the bottom of this issue. Senator Byrne raised the issue of markets and how Covid-19 restrictions apply to them. We need clearer information for the nuanced areas that are arising.

Last night, we had a very good debate on higher education. I argued that the management and staff of Munster Technological University, MTU, needed their heads knocked together. I got a very quick awakening last night when someone asked me why the university is in the Workplace Relations Commission if the staff are at fault. Clearly management is not engaging with the staff. We are 30 days away from the establishment of MTU and it is before the Workplace Relations Commission today. That is wrong in every sense of the word. The management must engage and get that technological university up and running quickly.