I am sharing time with Deputy Mattie McGrath. I will allow the Tánaiste a few minutes. He might be able to respond to some of the questions I ask. Businesses are in serious trouble all over west Cork and the rest of Ireland. Representatives of SMEs, to whom I speak every day, ask the same question, that is, how they are going to survive. The Tánaiste is not a miracle man with all the answers for me tonight but I sincerely hope that he has some. I want to concentrate on the tourism sector. The hotel sector is strugg…

No.

I wish the Minister the very best in his new role. Affordable housing is every family's dream but, sadly, it is not the reality for many families. Over the past four years, I have seen a large amount of lip service but no delivery on the ground. Housing and planning in this country is a total mess. It goes against families, building and local communities; it is basically anti-everything and it has left us a mess that will take us years, if not decades, to clean up. I urge the new Government to look at models that h…

Today the majority of the Dáil will vote for Deputy Micheál Martin as Taoiseach of our country. I congratulate Micheál on his appointment. He is an extremely experienced parliamentarian and a Cork man. The joining together of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael in the formation of a Government, which I said for many years would happen as there is simply no difference between each party, has come to pass, and now they are joined at the hip for years to come and maybe forever. Today, I make a clear decision for the people I re…

In 1973, when Ireland joined the Common Market, every denomination and race was to be treated equally in Ireland. I wonder if the Irish were treated in this way all over the world. Have we now become so politically correct that we are going to knock down our statues and sculptures and erase our history? The next thing we know our books will be burned to censor our history, culture and religion. What is happening worldwide is chaotic. Protesting during a pandemic is simply dangerous. People are killing and hurting e…

I thank the Acting Chairman. Over the past number of years, we have had many discussions on climate action and low-carbon development. Time and again, we hear of action needing to be taken. While any self-respecting Deputy would know that climate action is of vital importance, action by this Fine Gael Government supported by Fianna Fáil has been minimal, to say the least, in the past few years. When one sees ordinary farmers from rural Ireland having to fight for their rights in the courts after they have been seve…

I have two and a half minutes of questions and I ask the Minister to afford me two and a half minutes of answers. I ask him to forward in writing any answers he cannot provide now. Three weeks ago, I asked him about congregated settings and Bantry General Hospital. I thank him for the answers which were furnished to me this morning. A little bit of clarity is needed on congregated settings. Was a risk assessment on infection control carried out before the statutory instrument was signed in July 2016? If so, will he…

At his press conference on Friday, 15 May 2020, the Taoiseach announced that horse racing was to return on 8 June. Horse racing worldwide is known as having two codes, thoroughbred and trotting racing. Trotting is the largest form of horse racing within Europe, and where both codes exist, the relevant governments allowed both to recommence at the same time. These countries include France, Sweden, Norway, Germany, Finland, Belgium, Spain, Italy, Denmark, Holland, Canada, the USA, Australia and New Zealand. In Irelan…

It costs €50 in west Cork with same-day results.

Island living has not been easy throughout the Covid crisis. With eight great islands in west Cork, every effort must be made to keep young families living there. Sherkin Island national school closed its doors in June 2016. For four years it has been trying to secure adequate access to education for the island's children. Its successes over these four years have been hard won. It has secured additional ferries for primary school children, the departure and arrival times of which line up with school times. It is ha…

Bantry General Hospital has been a centre of excellence through this Covid-19 crisis and before. It covers more than 80,000 people in west Cork, many of whom are three hours away from Cork University Hospital, CUH. Yesterday I was informed by a family member in Bantry, who is only 1 km from our hospital, which is a centre of excellence, that their 88-year-old mother fell at 10 a.m. The family member rang the ambulance service at 10 a.m to take her to Bantry General Hospital, to be told their mother would not be tak…

Community policing has served us well down through the years in west Cork with excellent gardaí such as Damian White and Brigid Hartnett who have been second to none in carrying out their duties and protecting the people they serve. This has not been made easy through the years due to the closure by the previous Fine Gael Government of seven Garda stations in west Cork, namely, those in Castletownshend, Ballygurteen, Ballyfeard, Goleen, Inchigeela, Ballinspittle and Adrigole, saving a meagre €28,000. While the Gove…

The Minister might answer some of my questions.

The Ireland of today has totally changed, a change that will take us years to recover from. The small-time business will struggle to survive this crisis, which is far greater than anything we have ever faced before. People from business after business are contacting me daily, I assume they are contacting other Deputies too. They tell me they cannot see how they are going to survive, never mind reopen. Tourism is a major employer throughout this island. The incoming Government must fully focus on a clear way forward…

I asked about representation of the VFI.

Healthcare workers have been heroes since the outbreak of the coronavirus throughout the country. During recent weeks, essential front-line healthcare workers from various parts of my constituency and beyond have contacted me to express their concerns about the fact they have no time to do homework with their children. They are worried that come September, when schools reopen, their children will have fallen behind. The parents of some children were home full time to offer them support and home educate them but the…

I have a number of questions on which I would appreciate a response from the Minister. Arts and culture are the cornerstone of our society. Creativity is vital to our health and wellbeing. Culture and creativity are helping people through this crisis. People are looking to the arts for inspiration and consolation. Expectations of financial commitment will need to be revised across all sectors in light of the significant and necessary emergencies being introduced in response to the Covid-19 crisis. It is imperative …

Will the Deputy answer my question about the wood pigeon derogation?

The coronavirus has raised many questions. I fully respect it is impossible for the Minister or anyone else to have all of the answers. Every effort has to be made to keep the food chain open, especially when farmers are going through such a serious financial crisis. I thank each and every meat plant worker for keeping the meat chain open by working through this crisis. On 19 March, I raised in this House the worries of the people of Castletownbere that some of the fishermen on foreign fishing vessels offloading fi…

I am totally disappointed that the Minister has not accepted what happened in Castletownbere. The fact was that a Spanish-registered vessel left Spain when people on board had the coronavirus, and then it stopped in Castletownbere. I have never said they cannot come into Castletownbere or any other port in Ireland; I asked what measures we have in place to protect the people of Castletownbere and its surrounds, or the people in any port in this country. That is what I asked continuously. On 19 March, I mentioned it…