Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I agree with my colleague, Senator Ahearn, on two issues. The first is what is being done for the Defence Forces, which is long overdue. The Minister, Deputy Coveney, has done an outstanding job in setting up the review and then acting on its recommendations and securing delivery at Cabinet, which is significant, through a substantial financial package over a number of years that will bring our Defence Forces up to standard. I pay tribute to the work Deputy Kehoe did to keep the show on the road in very difficult circumstances when he was Minister of State for many years.

I also agree with my colleague with regard to CLÁR funding. The primary school in Kilfenora has submitted an excellent application for funding to build an astroturf pitch. This is badly needed and would be a great facility not only for the school, but for the wider community of Kilfenora. I very much hope that the Minister will look favourably on the application and provide funding for that very important facility.

We all know that Covid has not gone away. We were all startled at the revelations yesterday that almost 1,000 people are in hospital with Covid. We need a reality check with regard to Covid. We need to impose restrictions on ourselves and wear masks where we feel compromised. I call on retail outlets and other facilities to ensure that their hand sanitiser units are filled because it has come to my attention lately that quite a lot of hand sanitiser units are empty. They are there for a reason. We are still in the latter days of a pandemic. There are spikes coming. We need to ensure that we are vigilant.

On the motion being taken in the other House this evening, to be quite honest, I believe it is political opportunism. This Government has handled the pandemic very well and saved many lives. It has also reacted as best as it possibly could to the war in Ukraine. More than 30,000 Ukrainian people are living in Ireland, where they are catered for and housed. The actions we are taking to manage the effects of this terrible war on the cost of living and the interventions that will be made through the budget, which has been brought forward to late September, will make a significant difference to people's lives. I actually believe-----