Paul Daly (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I wish to be associated with Senator Boyhan's remarks in complimenting and thanking the staff for facilitating the debate last night. However, I cannot let the occasion go, in commenting on his remarks as to why the debate went on for so long and what happened, to say I am blue in the face listening to arguments here about Bills being cut short and guillotines. On the one occasion on which we did allow seven hours to tease out legislation, I do not like hearing back that it should not have happened, and I wish to put that on the record.

Yesterday's announcements and the unfortunate rising numbers associated with Covid have been mentioned already.We might need the Minister to come in that regard. In addition to asking for a debate on the situation with Covid-19, however, I want to speak about the idea of a booster vaccination and its efficacy. With increasing numbers in the categories that will receive a booster vaccination, the people concerned want to know the when, the where and the how of the process. There is an urgency here because almost everybody now knows of people who were doubly vaccinated and then contracted Covid-19. To be sure to be sure, then, everybody wants a booster vaccination as soon as possible.

Before I raised this subject, however, I did some research and it is not clearly stated anywhere when a booster vaccination is most effective. Is it a case of getting the third vaccination into people’s arms as quickly as possible or is it more effective if the jabs are given five or six months after the second vaccination? That is not clear now and it needs to be. A debate in this House may not make it any clearer for people out there, but there certainly must be an awareness campaign and this point must be clarified as part of it.

People who were vaccinated in June want their third dose now because it is available to them, or they think that it is. Would those people be better off waiting until December when it will be six months after their second vaccination and will it be the same for those who were vaccinated in the subsequent months? This aspect must be made very clear to people because there is an urgency in this regard. This is especially the case given there is so much awareness now of doubly-vaccinated people picking up Covid-19. People want their third booster shot as soon as possible. That might not be the most effective thing to do, however, and perhaps they should wait for the full six months, but people must be made aware of that fact.