Malcolm Byrne (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I have been listening to some of the comments made by previous speakers. We need to give young people a break. They have endured enormous sacrifices over the past 14 months. I got quite annoyed listening to some of the finger wagging going on over the weekend, particularly from people who have been vaccinated while young people continue to have to wait. Similar to Senator Garvey, I saw it in Courtown. We had traffic chaos over the weekend at our beaches. We have had a year to prepare for all of this. Resources have been provided to local authorities. We should have known this would happen. I have been very fortunate, like many others, because I live in the great town of Gorey and I have access to the sea and country areas. If people are cooped up in an apartment for a long period once we get a bit of sun of course they want to come out. It is only natural. This does not excuse irresponsible behaviour, for which the minority were responsible. If people bring a bag of cans into a public area, they are well capable of loading those empty cans back into the bag and taking them home with them. If we are going to have an outdoor summer, and the resources have been provided, then in these circumstances we should make sure our local authorities prepare for it. I listened to Mike Cubbard, the mayor of Galway, earlier on "Morning Ireland" and I thought he was right. We need to give young people at break. They have endured an horrendous year.

I ask that at some stage we have a debate in the House on the question of grief and sacrifice. We have lost almost 5,000 people. Many of their families have not had the opportunity to mourn. There will be issues when we emerge from this. We know about the potential mental health impact. There will be a need for counselling services and support. As we finally come out of this pandemic, the House should consider ways we can remember those who lost their lives and allow those who have lost loved ones to grieve appropriately.