They are not working yet.

That is because they are not working.

I am glad to get an opportunity to speak. I congratulate the Minister on her appointment and wish her all the very best for the duration of this Dáil. I want to ensure that seasonal workers who were not working the week of 6 March will be made eligible for the coronavirus payment now. I welcome the extension of the payment for a category of people which in Kerry includes hotel workers and bus drivers. There are many of them and they have no work. Because they were not working the week of 6 March, they have been lef…

May I ask a supplementary question?

I am glad to get this opportunity. There was a big announcement yesterday by the EPA about septic tanks. I believe it is targeting people who want to build single, one-off houses in the country, and to stop them from doing that. I want to talk about Kilcummin. This village has been promised a sewerage scheme since 2004. It was to start in 2008. Money was announced here in 2013 by a Labour Deputy and the job was supposed to be done last year. It was cancelled last year. I ask the Minister of State to make sure it is…

I am glad to get the opportunity to talk on this important topic. As I have said before, if we are to be relevant at all, we must seek to do our best for vulnerable people, young and old. I will start with the old. Home help hours have been left very short of funding in Kerry. It seems to be a battle to get half an hour or an extra quarter of an hour for older people. I am aware of one 83 year old woman whose home help application was shot down recently. She had been asked if she can get out of bed by herself and t…

I congratulate the Minister of State on his new appointment. As I have been calling for the reopening of Skellig Michael for some time, I am glad to support Deputy Griffin in his question. The entire area of south Kerry is being adversely affected by the ongoing closure of Skellig Michael. Portmagee, Valentia, Ballinskelligs, Cahersiveen and Waterville greatly depend on this major attraction being open. As has been said, it is vital that we reopen it for the rest of the tourism season. One of the problems is insura…

I wish the Minister of State well in his new portfolio. While I am grateful for the thrust of the scheme, like Deputy Mattie McGrath I am doubtful of it. The banks will be the distributors. I was once told the banks will give a person money if he or she does not need it and if he or she has a good credit rating. If a person needs money, however, the banks will not give it. That is the truth of the matter. There are many problems specific to Kerry, in respect of seasonal workers, hotel workers, bus drivers and so on…

I thank Sinn Féin, in particular Deputy Funchion, for giving us the opportunity to discuss this important subject. As we all know, our children are our future and we must try to promote and protect them at every opportunity we get. I agree fully with some of the comments that have been made. The steep costs accrued by parents for childcare places them in a vulnerable position, one that they cannot afford. It is clear that, even before the coronavirus started, many crèches were in a serious situation in terms of kee…

The Tánaiste is the Tánaiste for all the country, not just Dublin. If the public health officials do not understand rural people or rural publicans, the Tánaiste should. Is this another way of routing us out of rural Ireland? It is fairly foolish to think the virus can know whether people are eating their dinner with their pints. Most of the people I represent eat their dinner in the middle of the day. The virus does not know whether they are eating meals with their pints. It is fairly foolish that this is the stor…

Thank you very much, Acting Chairman, for giving me an opportunity to contribute. I will be very brief. I am very disappointed, hurt and angry at what we are discussing here today. This Bill will put a levy and more charges on farmers and people in rural Ireland. Let us think of all the people who cannot open their doors and employ the people they were previously employing. We have no money for home help for people who are trying to stay living in their homes for as long as possible. People are dying with maggots i…

It is giving the Government a free hand.

The Minister cannot con me. Nothing is going to Kerry.

Where are the new planning guidelines?

On behalf of all of the publicans in rural Ireland, I ask the Taoiseach to give them the green light to open next Monday. They have waited for 17 or 18 weeks. People living in rural valleys, glens and highways do not have the wherewithal to go to bigger towns where they have to have a meal. They do not have the time or funding to do so. People used to go to their local pub for a couple of drinks. They are at their wits' end. Mental health is an issue for publicans and people who cannot get a drink and have a conver…

I am glad to get a short time to talk on behalf of the people we are representing, including small business people, farmers and fishermen. We know the talks that are coming up are critical for all our constituents. I want the Government to spell out a clear message to the people it is dealing with in Europe. The myth is out there that farmers are getting gift cheques in the post. We want to make people realise that these cheques in the post are not gifts at all. The cheques in the post are supposed to compensate fa…

I am pleased to get the opportunity to ask the Minister of State a few questions. We have read and heard stories that the Germans have applied for massive amounts of money, with the interest rates at practically nil, for infrastructural projects and for any deficiencies they have in their country or economy. They have it done for many weeks. They are ahead of us. It appears to me that they are ahead of the posse. It is interesting to think that a country as financially advanced as Germany is availing of funding for…

Such people need assistance too to give them the wherewithal to open their doors again. We are not being fair on them. I accept I am straying a bit.

The fact is that one has to travel 15 miles to get a pint in a rural area because all the rural pubs are not open.

I have just one other point to raise, which is about the banks and mortgages. AIB has deferred the granting of mortgages to couples because one of the parties is on the Covid payment, even if the other person is quite entitled to draw a mortgage but because the application is a joint one AIB is deferring their application. That will nail small builders as a result and it is holding up progress. Could we access funding the same as the Germans are doing? Surely we are as good as them.