Malcolm Byrne (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for his reply. I welcome the announcement of this funding but unfortunately, I do not share the Minister of State's confidence that the HSE will be able to allocate it as quickly as possible, particularly as many working in the sector are still waiting for their €1,000 Covid-related bonus payment to which they are entitled. I would be grateful for further guarantees in this regard. I accept it is the Minister's intention that the payments be made quickly but I seek further guarantees that all of these payments will be made within the next month. Can the Department say to all of the organisations that do wonderful work in all of our communities that by the end of November they will have received some of these payments? There are already mechanisms in place for working out how funding is allocated to these organisations so it cannot be too difficult to draw up a plan, particularly given the costs. The Minister of State has indicated that payments will be made by the end of November but I am looking for an assurance that this will happen.