Annie Hoey (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I want to follow up on an earlier point. When we are talking about the national maternity hospital and religious ethos, it is worth pointing out that only nine of the current 19 maternity hospitals provide abortion services that two thirds of the people voted for. We still have a very long way to go to get the abortion services two thirds of the people voted in favour of.

I want to highlight briefly again the fact the Student Universal Support Ireland pandemic unemployment payment issue has not been resolved. I have raised the issue on a few occasions in the House. At this point I think it will probably not be resolved. That is very frustrating for the students and families affected by this. I wanted to raise the issue again today.

I highlight, as was mentioned, a four-day working week pilot programme launched today. The campaign for a four-day working week was organised by Fórsa, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, the National Women’s Council, Friends of the Earth Ireland and a number of other groups. The evidence shows a four-day week can provide positive results for businesses and for employees with respect to a work-life balance. I very much welcome the fact the Government has agreed to fund a call for research to assess the economic, social and environmental impacts of a four-day working week in the Irish context. The past year has provided workers and employers with an opportunity to consider the way we work, leading many to reflect on the way we do things. I hope the Government will come to the table in a positive way on this issue, as it is something many people would want to see happen.

On a final note, it is Pride week. For those of us who are members of the LGBT community, people ask us why we still celebrate Pride, and it has been highlighted here. There was the burning of flags in Waterford last week. Anti-trans, homophobic, abhorrent, exclusionary, cruel stickers popped up all over the country. Irish LGBT youth faced increased mental health struggles during the lockdown, as indicated in a BeLonG To survey that was carried out. Thousands turned out for the Warsaw Pride march against the rising tide of homophobia in Poland in the form of LGBT-free zones. There is an enormous way to go. While it is Pride week and we will be out celebrating safely in our way, we should remember there is an enormous degree of struggle we still have to go through.