Eugene Murphy (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

On this special day dealing with disabilities, I welcome the Minister of State and thank her for her commitment to the sector, which is recognised by everybody as strong and extraordinary. We have a lot of work to do but the Minister of State is certainly doing well in standing up for people.

Like the Minister of State, Senator Clifford-Lee and others, I would prefer not to be here this morning having to support the legislation. I will say what I said yesterday in a debate. These are not ordinary times; they are extraordinary times. We all have to pull together in these times. We have to try to bring people with us. It is important to point out that there will probably be more restrictions but society will not be closed down by the Government. We have to be careful.

The problem for the Government and health officials is we do not know about Omicron. Nobody knows how dangerous the variant will be. It is a huge problem. This is why I have a problem with the two-word phrase "mixed messages". When we are dealing with a world pandemic it is the most stupid phrase for politicians and others to be using. Even the medics cannot get it right. We are facing a world challenge where in excess of 4 million people have lost their lives and millions have been affected. I was in the company of two families in my area who both lost their mothers. I would not like any family to go through what they went through.

I respect everybody's point of view and I reply to all emails, as do my staff. I do not keep anybody out of the equation, irrespective of whether his or her views are at variance with what I think. When I find people I know very well sending me videos making a laugh of the latest variant coming from South Africa I cannot understand it. Nobody knows where we are going with it.

With regard to the legislation, it is far better that the Government is prepared. We may never have to use the legislation, as several speakers have said, and I hope we will not have to do so. If, in a few weeks' time, it turns out that Omicron is a very serious threat to us all and the Government had not moved ahead in time, we can imagine the uproar there would be from everybody in the media, the Opposition and everywhere else. While I totally dislike this type of legislation, and I cannot wait for the day we can unhinge all of this from our democratic society, it is what we have to support now. While I do not blame them for doing so, some people argued for a zero-Covid policy. God help us if we had that. The pandemic is a challenge for every one of us. None of us can get it right. I also say this to the media. It is very hard to have a clear pathway forward when we are dealing with a pandemic.

There is a major challenge for teachers and parents. Getting the word out about masks was probably a bit rushed but much of the reason for that is the pandemic. I have spoken to many school principals and teachers. My daughter has begun teaching so I know what is going on. They accept it is a challenge but they will put their shoulders to the wheel. Yesterday, I spoke to many parents about wearing masks. As long as they know that a child with special conditions or a child aged over nine who is not happy with a mask is catered for, they have no difficulty with masks. Let us be clear and honest all around. We are dealing with a very difficult situation.