Seanad debates

Thursday, 16 December 2021

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business

 

10:30 am

Photo of Martin ConwayMartin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I acknowledge the Cathaoirleach and wish him a very happy Christmas. I thank the Clerk and his team for the great work they do, and all the great people in Leinster House who do so much for us. I also thank all our colleagues across the House. Since we resumed meeting in person we have got to know each other a lot better. The work we do here is absolutely fantastic.

It is going to be a difficult Christmas because Covid-19 is still with us. We all have to be cognisant of the fact that we are still living in a pandemic. The booster programme is going very well but I am quite concerned about those who got the Janssen vaccine. It was a single-dose vaccine. A lot of people who got it are in direct provision, are members of the Travelling community or are homeless. They are the most vulnerable in our society. An extra effort needs to be made to ensure that those people get their booster without any delay. The third shot is seen as giving us extra immunity but if someone only got the Janssen vaccine they only got one injection. We need to make a really special effort to ensure that the people who received the Janssen vaccine get their booster as quickly as possible. I do not know how that can happen but I have no doubt that the HSE has the mechanisms to make it happen. I call on the HSE to ensure that all those who received a Janssen jab get their booster vaccine this side of Christmas. It will provide the reassurance, confidence and protection that is needed.

I wish everybody a happy and a very safe Christmas. We will all be back here in the new year and hopefully 2022 will be a better and a healthier year and we will begin to see the back of this pandemic.

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