Yesterday was a critical day in our fight against Covid-19. The Taoiseach and I spoke yesterday afternoon as he considered the public health advice from the National Public Health Emergency Team, NPHET. I am glad the Taoiseach also spoke to Michelle O'Neill and Arlene Foster about strengthening the all-Ireland approach. There is no doubt that the decision facing Government yesterday was hugely challenging. It has decided not to implement the NPHET recommendation to move to level 5 and instead we will move to level …

The Government cut the pandemic unemployment payment and the wage subsidy. That is the reality. For all of those in low-paid work to whom the Taoiseach referred, and who he correctly said are disproportionately affected by a very severe lockdown, let me tell him that the fact the Government cut these important supports looms large and is to the forefront of their thoughts when there is any talk of a complete lockdown, because those are the supports they rely on to pay their bills and to live. The Taoiseach said the…

That was with no other care in the system.

I reiterate the concerns over the news of cases and a cluster in a nursing home. I presume that we have a better plan for residents in nursing homes and those who run them than we had last spring. I have raised the issue of testing and tracing with the Taoiseach time out of number. We are being contacted increasingly by parents across the State who are facing lengthy delays for tests for their schoolgoing children. There was a delay of up to six days in one case I dealt with. Those affected include children with un…

Yesterday, 12 trade organisations and 429 businesses from the hospitality and events sector wrote an open letter to the Taoiseach. I assume he has read that letter. He will know that the vast majority of these businesses are indigenous. He will know that they are now at their wits' end and are calling on the Government to make a series of emergency interventions to ensure their businesses are not lost. In next week's budget will the Government reduce the 13.5% VAT rate to 9% for the hospitality and tourism sectors?…

I reiterate the point just made. We now have access to the letter written from NPHET to the Minister for Health, which found its way into the public domain; I do not know how. Perhaps the Taoiseach knows but I do not know how it found its way into the public domain on Sunday evening. It was private correspondence. In any event, that is all we have. The production and publication of data are essential because data are the building blocks of the logic for the direction of travel in very important decisions that impac…

I was talking about Philip Nolan's-----

The Taoiseach seems to have difficulty even accepting publicly or saying out loud that the Government did in fact cut the pandemic unemployment payment. We know it was initially envisaged as a 12-week intervention. We know now that this was not the case. We know this is a protracted period of a public health and an economic crisis for workers across the State. The cut that was made has to be reversed. It is not reasonable nor is it proportionate for the State to impose restrictions which keep people away from work.…

It should certainly be higher than €203.

Deputy McDonald is avoiding nothing.

The Taoiseach should not mislead the Dáil. That is entirely untrue. That is inaccurate. That is wrong information.

By stopping all other activity in the services.

This morning, the Economic and Social Research Institute, ESRI, released an important paper on the impact of Covid-19 on the housing supply. It argues that the pandemic will result in a drop in the private sector supply of new homes. This will further widen the gap between supply and demand, making housing even more unaffordable for working people. The ESRI's central recommendation is commonsensical and crystal clear - the State must increase the supply of social and affordable homes. This is the only way to delive…

Níl aon phlean ag an Taoiseach. Is í sin an fhírinne. Tá a lán le rá aige ach níl aon phlean aige. He cited the extraordinary income support measures that were introduced by Government. Of course, the Government has cut the pandemic unemployment payment and the wage subsidy and it has left tens of thousands of the lowest income workers out of the schemes. Please do not brag or hide behind those initiatives. We were promised and the people were promised a scheme and a plan for affordable housing. We were promised we…

Yesterday, at 6.30 in the morning, Derryroe Limited, a development company, bulldozed No. 40 Herbert Park. This was the home of The O’Rahilly, who was killed in action during the 1916 Rising. As the Taoiseach knows, he was the leader of the Irish Volunteers and the campaign to save this house in which he lived received very widespread and deserved support right across the public. Key meetings in regard to the Easter Rising took place at No. 40 Herbert Park, so it was a place of major significance. Earlier this mont…

When he stands up to respond, will the Taoiseach tell us when the two errors in respect of the calculated grades came to light? I know this news will be deeply concerning to students across the land and it seems quite something that errors of this magnitude have occurred but I would like to know when the Government first discovered them. Can the Taoiseach confirm which Departments and organisations have been consulted as part of this high level review and who within the Department of the Taoiseach is heading up thi…

When was the Department made aware of this?

This really is the icing on the cake, the final cock-up for the class of 2020. It will have ramifications not just for that class, but for secondary school students in fifth and sixth year who were already anxious and went back to school at the height of a pandemic. They look to the State and the people in charge for some reassurance that they have some idea what they are doing, and here we find ourselves now. I am very concerned by the fact that the Taoiseach had this information last week and clearly it was kept …

Will she come to the House today?

Will the statement be delivered on the floor of the Dáil?