Robbie Gallagher (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit ar ais go dtí an Teach. The Minister of State is welcome back to the House. I remember when the difficulty arose with this legislation six months ago when premises were extended to facilitate outdoor dining. It created a difficulty for the Garda and the business owners because there was a bit of a grey area as to whether the piece they added onto their premises, grounds or whatever was licensed. That caused some difficulty. I raised the matter in the Seanad at the time and I was delighted the Government moved swiftly to address that particular anomaly.

Here we are now. It is hard to believe it is six months later and we are, unfortunately, extending the legislation again, due to Covid. It is commonsensical legislation. None of the legislation taken in by the Government is taken in lightly but we are in the middle of a pandemic. We are in a war against Covid-19 and that war, unfortunately, continues. Like many other governments around the world, this Government is forced to react to an ever-changing situation. It must be on its toes in that regard. This is commonsensical legislation and I am delighted to support it for another six-month period. I hope there will be no need to extend it any further when we consider it again in six months.

This is perhaps an opportune time to review licensing laws and see what comes in. I look forward to everyone taking part in that review.

This is a difficult time for businesses, especially those in the hospitality sector. Even though their doors may be open today, it is unfortunate that the flow of customers coming through that they would normally expect is not there. With that in mind, I am delighted the Taoiseach and, indeed, the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform have agreed to meet representatives of the hospitality industry because they are going through a very difficult time. It has been a difficult time for all businesses but those in the hospitality sector have been hit the hardest. People who would normally go out for a bite to eat or a pint of beer are not doing so out of fear in this climate. The hospitality sector will miss out on the revenue it would normally hope to get in at this time of year. This is a busy time of year and people would normally be organising Christmas parties and what have you. It is a normally a good time of year for the hospitality sector but, unfortunately, we do not live in normal times. I hope the Government will listen to the hospitality sector. Businesses in that sector are constrained in the revenue they can take in. I hope the Government listens to them and puts measures in place to compensate them at this difficult time so that, when things improve, everyone will be in a position to move on and get back to business as usual, if I can use that term.