An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business
Seanad Éireann — 2020-07-16
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Aidan Davitt (FF), Industrial and Commercial Panel

I echo the sentiments of Senator Boyhan. I have seen the great picture he has in his office with the Irish soccer team on the day they came back. Knowing Senator Boyhan for the past four years, and given that he talked his way onto the bus, my only surprise is that he did not talk his way onto the team. On a serious note, I convey my sincere sympathies to the Charlton family.
I also congratulate Deputy Calleary on his elevation, Deputy Chambers on his promotion to a more senior post as Whip and Deputy Fleming from the midlands, of course, who has got a position as Minister of State. I could not let today go without mentioning the former Minister, Deputy Cowen. I have no doubt he will be back at the top table again. I wish him and his family well. They have endured a very tough time recently.
Many Senators have touched on the issue of pubs reopening, but we need to put some flesh on it. As Senator Dooley mentioned, the big problem for country pubs is that many of the specific grants will not apply. As the Leader will know from her previous portfolio, the local enterprise office, LEO, grants stopped in May. None of the pubs was open at that stage to avail of the voucher at that time. The restart grant for businesses is only equivalent to their rates, but many pubs in country areas are not paying high rates. There should be a set figure. These businesses are being sidelined, and their owners and families are being particularly put out. There needs to be a hard grant available, particularly to country pubs to help them reopen.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2020-07-16/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:48:26+00:00
Sitting date: 2020-07-16