An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business
Dail Éireann — 2021-06-29
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Peadar Tóibín (AON), Meath West

Ireland is alone now in Europe in the banning of indoor dining and drinking. Pubs and restaurants here have been closed longer than in any other European country. Tens of thousands of hospitality workers are out of work at the moment and being pushed into poverty. Many businesses are operating in a zombie state, surviving on Government supports. Young people are now being threatened with a two-tier citizenship, whereby civil rights will be for some but not for others. Then we have the ongoing problem with regard to antigen testing. It looks to many people that the Government has outsourced these decisions to a third party. Who knew that the idea of a revolving Taoiseach would one day include the Chief Medical Officer, CMO, of this State? What analysis has the Government done on the figures given by the NPHET? Finally, if the Government is alone in Europe in banning indoor dining, why is such activity more dangerous in Irish pubs and restaurants than it is in every other European country?

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2021-06-29/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:49:27+00:00
Sitting date: 2021-06-29