Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister back to the House. I concur with the credit that has appropriately been given to the people working in the vaccination centres around the country. They are the human beings who are injecting people's arms and making them safe. I commend Mr. Damien McCallion, the HSE's lead for the vaccination roll-out, who has done a phenomenal job. He is out front for good news and bad news. It is critical that people are out front for bad news and that is not always the case. It is often left to the politicians and some great civil servants to share bad news. One only sees some others when there is good news to share and we are reaching milestones. It is important to put my compliment to Mr. McCallion on the record.

There is no doubt but that the Government is now meeting its vaccination target because the supply and systems are in place. I would like to hear where we are with supply. Last week in the Dáil, the Minister said that the best-case scenario for delivery of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine in June was 190,000 doses while the worst case scenario was 60,000. Has he an update for the House as to where we are with those figures? What is the Minister's projection for June? What is his projection for the beginning, middle and end of June, respectively? That is important.

It is great that the portal will be open to 40- to 45-year-olds from Wednesday, but I have concerns. My colleague, Deputy Colm Burke, put on the record of the Dáil last week during Leaders' Questions the case of a lady with the blood board. As a healthcare worker, she registered on the HSE portal but still has not got a vaccine and cannot register on the ordinary portal because she has already registered on the HSE portal.That is not fair, especially when that person sees younger people getting the vaccine in their hundreds of thousands. I understand that 3,000 people who have registered through the HSE portal are in a similar situation. That is very worrying. Some of them are in their 50s and 60s. It is most unfair and frustrating for people who happen to work in healthcare to find themselves in a situation where people who are ten, 15, or 20 years younger are getting the vaccine in their droves while they are still waiting for it. Even though they may not be direct front-line healthcare workers, they certainly are healthcare workers and are exposed. What is the Minister's position in respect of that issue and what is he going to do about it?

In terms of an issue which has been raised already, namely, the concerns around the AstraZeneca vaccine, when is NIAC going to provide us with an update on its position? Surely to God it is looking at what is being said internationally in respect of the administration of the second dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine. I have spoken to healthcare workers who are due to receive the second dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine and who are concerned about it. We and NIAC cannot ignore what is being said internationally. The people deserve for NIAC to provide its most updated advice on the matter. If that updated advice is the same, we need to hear it again.