Robbie Gallagher (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The leaving certificate for this year is now complete. Many of our young students and, indeed, their families and the colleges they hope to attend, will be hoping that the traditional third level college experience of so many students down through the years will return. Hopefully, our young leaving certificate students who wish to go to college this year will experience that.

With that in mind, I welcome the news that the Government is introducing a pilot rapid testing project across four colleges, Trinity College Dublin, University College Dublin, University College Cork and NUI Galway.The project is called UniCoV and it will conduct a large-scale analysis of testing technologies for use in surveillance of Covid-19 and prevention in higher educational settings. These will include rapid antigen testing, saliva-based polymerase chain reaction, PCR, testing and waste water surveillance. The findings from this will, hopefully, inform the authorities as how best to ensure that colleges remain open and what to do in the event of an outbreak. It is hoped that more than 8,000 students and indeed staff members will participate in this experiment and I encourage many staff and students to participate so that campus life remain open in a safe way. We all know that it is the best way to learn and it is better for the mental health of students that they are able to participate in on-campus learning as opposed to what they have been doing for the past year to 18 months.

Second, I join the Leader in congratulating our former colleague, Deputy Ivana Bacik on her great success in the Dublin Bay South by-election. It has been very hard-earned. Deputy Bacik has worked hard over the years and I understand that this is her fourth attempt to get elected to the Lower House. This shows that her hard work has eventually paid off and I am delighted for her. Apart from the fact that she is an astute and able politician, she is also quite simply a very decent human being. I, for one, am delighted for her and I join with the Leader also in congratulating all those who put their names forward. It is a very brave thing to do. The lack of electoral success is never a reflection on a person’s ability as an individual and that is an important point to make.

When talking about hard work and sticking to the pace for many years, I wish Councillor Ian McGarvey from Ramelton and in County Donegal a very happy birthday this week. He reaches the young age of 91 and continues to serve as an active member of Donegal County Council. He was first elected to the council at the age of 73 and became mayor and cathaoirleach of Donegal at the age of 82 and he has run in four general elections. I am delighted that he is going as hearty and strong as ever. I congratulate him for all his hard work and dedication to the good people of his electoral area of Letterkenny and Milford and I wish him and his good wife, Marjorie, continued good health. I would be grateful if the Leader, when writing a wee note to Deputy Bacik, might also write a note to Ian and his wife wishing them all continued good health and success.