I am going to have to stop the Minister and his Baltic bubble now, because we have to move on. I am sorry, but the speaker chose not to allow enough time for an answer. I am moving on because-----

-----other Deputies will be deprived. If they want answers, they must leave enough time for the Minister to answer. If they do not, that is okay too. I call Deputy Cian O'Callaghan.

The rest will have to be replied to in writing. I call Deputy Michael Healy-Rae.

I am going to stop the Tánaiste in 15 seconds. I am sorry.

Several questions were raised there. There is a minute and a half.

That concludes the statement by the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade in respect of the Covid-19 crisis, especially in respect of travel and passports, and questions and answers. Sorry for cutting across you, Tánaiste.

Deputy McNamara and I are sharing cúig nóiméad agus cúig nóiméad. While the Minister is writing love notes on his departure, he might include one for the 24,000 people in Galway who asked him to carry out a feasibility study on light rail. I am still awaiting an answer, so perhaps he will just do an extra little love note on that, and on reflection given the post-Covid conditions and the climate change challenges. On this matter, I welcome the opportunity to speak and I welcome the task force. It is a little late i…

I am going to stop the Minister there because this is Deputy Paul Murphy's time.

I am just conscious of the time. It is Deputy Paul Murphy's time.

Does the Deputy want the Minister to answer him?

I will move on to the Rural Independent Group and Deputy O'Donoghue. I will not interrupt the Deputy but if he wants the Minister to reply, he should leave some time.

Ag bogadh ar aghaidh go dtí na Independents, Deputy Harkin.

Sin é. Níl aon chainteoir eile ann so we will have a break for 20 minutes. That is the end of this session. We will go into the third session after the break.

Tá dhá cheist agam, ceann amháin i mBéarla agus ceann i nGaeilge. Ní mór dom a rá i dtús báire go bhfuil an teachtaireacht iomlán mhícheart ag dul amach go dtí an tír inniu. Tá muidne i Seomra na Dála, tá sé folamh agus níl aon Taoiseach ann. Tá gá le hathbhreithniú a dhéanamh ar an gcinneadh sin. I have two questions for the Taoiseach, one in Irish and one in English. First, however, the fact that we are in an empty Dáil Chamber and the Taoiseach is ensconced in another room sends the wrong message to the country …

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Taoiseach ach tá rud difriúil faoin earnáil seo agus tá a fhios aige é sin. Beidh na mná tí agus na coláistí thíos leis. Beidh impleachtaí maidir leis an gceantar, leis an nGaeilge agus leis na Gaeltachtaí. Is rud thar a bheith tábhachtach é seo. It is very important that the implications of the summer colleges not going ahead is realised at Government level. I would appreciate it if the Taoiseach could come back to me in writing on when the package will be announced. My second question rel…

I will ask again about private hospitals and nursing homes. Having read what I have read, I am more convinced than ever that nursing homes were not put to the top of the list. The Minister said many times in this Dáil that HIQA was the voice of the nursing homes. I looked at the minutes and I did not see HIQA as the voice of the nursing homes. HIQA had the expertise and the knowledge, more than any other body in the State, on this. If the Minister, the Government, or any of the experts of NPHET, had asked, they mig…

It is about inequity.

There is no equity in this. The Minister is talking about private patients going into the public system where the public system has significant waiting lists. If what the consultant stated on Monday is wrong, then the Minister should challenge her publicly about a three and a half year waiting list for gynaecology in the public system in Galway. I am too familiar with this. I appreciate the Minister has done a deal under pressure-----

-----with goodwill. Very quickly after that, however, it became apparent that it was not right and that the Minister is paying €115 million for empty hospitals. He then filled the private hospitals with public patients out of Merlin Park Hospital.

Up to €1.2 billion will be spent in a year on this system.