Micheál Carrigy (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Good morning. I will go back to something that has been raised here on numerous occasions by numerous representatives and it relates to the pandemic unemployment payment. I am speaking on behalf of the staff at St. Christopher's Services in Longford, which is a section 39 organisation with over 200 staff members providing daytime, residential and respite care for many adults and young children in our community. I am aware it is a place the Minister of State knows personally. I know she has visited it and that funding has been made available through her Department for numerous advances in the facility. It is one of those treasure facilities that we have in our county. There were challenging times, particularly during the pandemic, and there were challenges in keeping staff and pay parity etc because of the fact that it is a section 39 organisation. We have to put on record our thanks to all the staff for the work they did during that time. That was recognised by the Government with the announcement of the pandemic payment, that is, the €1,000 grant for those who worked throughout that time. However, like other areas within the health service and similar to other organisations, a substantial number of staff still have not received that payment two years on from the initial announcement. Frustration is growing among the staff regarding this. I bring it to the House and to the Minister of State today, on behalf of all the staff to get clarity as to what the situation is and on when all staff will receive their payments. Yet again, we thank the staff for the work they have done there down through generations in St. Christopher's Services on behalf of all the families in the county. We need clarity now on when that payment will be put in place.